Fairytales are for believers
by ThunderStorm-8
Summary: SB Sandry and Briar face and all new advanture by themselves. Who is this Chi-Cura lady? wht does she want? can these two relize their feelings before it's too late?
1. Fair Wings and Garden Moments

It was nothing more then a quiet day at Discipline. All it's inhabitants were currently doing something that fitted each of their own tastes. Rosethorn and Lark in their workrooms, Daja and Frostpine at the forge, Tris and Neko were meditating at the bay. However today two people occupied the gardens, Briar and Sandry. Sandry was sitting on the ground watching Briar as he gently tended his garden. She had an umbrella over her head to keep the sun off (her uncle had suggested it). She was next to the rose bushes, their beautiful fragrance flouted around her. Every now and then Briar would look back and see her, playing with a leaf that had fallen or sniffing one of the roses.  
  
'Gods she looks beautiful.' He thought, as would anyone else if they could have seen her. The wind blowing lightly in through her hair, what little sun shined threw the umbrella reflected off her golden brown hair, and that same innocent smile playing on her cherry lips. They were almost fifteen now and both of them had come out quite nicely.  
  
'It's almost like looking at a painting.' Briar decided. 'A picture out of a fairytale.' His life really was like some of the fairytales he had heard actually. Sandry had read them some one night in the winter this year because there was nothing better to do.  
  
It was like the story of Aladdin, a story about a street-rat that had fallen in love with the Rasha's daughter. He was like Aladdin and she was the beautiful daughter. There was no way that he could ever deserve Sandry. Former street rats could never marry Duchesses and nobles. Briar hadn't heard the end of the story, but he guessed that's what had happened to the street rat. 'All thought most of the other stories ended happily.' A little voice told him. 'So even if it did end out ok and he got the girl that's a fairy tale, this is real life.'  
  
Briar was snapped from his thoughts when Sandry's voice flouted into his ears. "Briar? Briar are you alright?"  
  
"Yeah, I'm fine Little Weaver." 'She's only concerned because she's my friend and foster sister.' He thought sadly, not letting any of that emotion show on his face but instead smiled reassuring at her. She smiled in return.  
  
'Oh not that smile.' She thought, trying not to melt inside like she did every time he smiled at her, or when he called her by that special nickname that only he used. 'Unfortunately he has nicknames like that for everyone.'  
  
Briar leaned down to his plants again, smiled to himself and then pulled a fairy-wing from its place. He turn around and walked over to Sandry, holding out the delicate flower to her. "Wow, it's so beautiful! Thank you Briar." She gently took hold of the stem and gazed at it. Looking over every petal as if she were trying to memorize it.  
  
"What is it called?" Briar plopped down next to her. "It's called Fairy- Wing. See how thin it looks and how light the colors are?" "Uh-huh." Sandry nodded. "Well supposable that's what fairy's wings look like. Though it's not used for much except to be pretty. But Rosethorn told me something else it can be used for." "Really? What?" "She says it's good for bringing back people that are dying. But only if the person using the flower has a truly noble reason for them to live."  
  
"Hmmm." Sandry processed this new information and starred at the flower. "A truly noble cause." She said quietly, turning this over and over.  
  
"Briar?" "Yeah?" "Do you..." She bit her lip. "Do you think I could have brought my parents back? If I had known about this?" Briar looked her in the eyes, now sitting in front of her. "Did you love them?" "Yes...I mean...They were my parents. Even thought they hardly ever spent any time with me I still loved them." "Then of course you could ha saved them. Just don't think back to it ok? What's done is done and there's no way to change it." "You're right Briar. I'm sorry." "You don't have to be sorry. After all those nightmares I don't blame you for thinking back."  
  
"Thank you Briar. For you know and for the flower." "No problem."  
  
With that two smiling faces turned to the sky and saw gray storm clouds come and over take the sun.  
  
Little was it known to the two of them but they had quite an audience, Daja and Tris were back from their activities and decided to stay and watch the show. "So what do you think is going on between them?" Tris whispered, wondering out loud. "No clue but I hope there's gonna' be a sequel." Both girls giggled silently and smiled at the joke. 


	2. War Begins

A cold rain pored down on the land one un-forgetful day in Winding Circle. It was a quiet day full of sorrow and boredom. And the worst of it was that there was nothing to keep their minds from the event that was about to happen.  
  
War had been thrown upon the land of Emlem like a blanket on a bed. The pirates that they had defeated so long ago were back, only this time their numbers were far greater. They had somehow gotten in with the Lord of another far away land that did not like Emelan. And the Lord had supplied them with a whole navy, not to mention they were surrounded on all sides by an army of soldiers.  
  
The people of discipline were spun about everywhere. Tris had taken refuge in the attic with Little Bear. Daja was again at the Forge, saying farewell to Frostpine and his apprentice Kirel. Rosethorn and Lark were busy at the temple talking to Moonstream.  
  
Sandry was sitting on her windowsill, trying to keep the tears from her eyes. All the men were called to fight, and all the male mages with the exception of a few women. And all men meant Frostpine, Neko, Kirel, Crane, and Briar. They were going to take her Briar away, away where she could not follow. Her uncle had specifically requested that if it got so bad that women mages must be brought in that she would not be one of them.  
  
She was to be his successor, to take up Lordship over the lands when he died. Which, according to the healers that tended him might not be that far off. More tears came to her eyes, and she forced them back just like she did the others.  
  
Hugging herself tightly to keep the bad thoughts at bay she starred out at the rain and washed it as it rolled down the window in a carefree way.  
  
She didn't even notice when someone slipped into her room, quick and quiet as a cat. One of the many skills he had picked up as an urchin.  
  
"Sandry?" Someone called, she reached out her magic and felt who, Briar, of course Briar. She had known it was him from the second she heard his voice. He sat down next to her on the pillows that covered the sill. "Are you alright?" She forced a smiled, not daring to look at him. "I'm ok." He placed a warm hand on her shoulder. "You don't seem ok." Reaching up she entwined her fingers in his.  
  
"I'm alright. I must not be afraid, I have to be strong for the people of Emelan." Briar nodded. "I understand." He didn't want to leave either. He wanted to be here where he could protect her. 'Heh, not like she needs protection all that much.' He thought bitterly. Sandry could take very good care of herself without his help.  
  
"Tell you what." Briar said cheerfully. "What?" Sandry turned her head to look at him. Briar moved their hands, still one, and held them out in front of the them. "Lets make a pact. That'll help ease the pain of everything." Sandry nodded, warming up to the idea. "I'll start. Ok. I, Briar Moss, hereby swear that I will do whatever it takes to come home safely to Discipline and my family. Dedicates Rosethorn, and Lark, Lady Sandrilene Fa Toren, Tristan Chandler, and Daja Kisubo." He gave her hand a comforting squeeze. Sandry smiled. "I Lady Sandrilene Fa Toren hereby swear to pray to every god, every day for the safe return of Briar Moss, Nicklarian Goldeye, Dedicate Frostpine, his apprentice Kirel, and all others involved in this war. I will also do everything I can to help in other ways." She squeezed his hand in return.  
  
"That's more like it." Briar said, smiled the best and warmest smile he could muster. "Yes, that is more like it." Sandry agreed.  
  
They sat a few more minutes in silence, hands locked in the same position still. Then Briar broke the silence. "Sandry?" "Yes?" "Promise me also that you'll be careful? Don't leave Discipline unless you have your guards with you or something." She giggled. "Oh Briar you sound just like Uncle. Always worrying about me more then he should." Briar fought to keep a blush from taking over his face. "I...just don't want anything to happen to you. Neither does you're uncle, you are going to be his successor after all." "True." Sandry sighed, leaning back against the wall. Another moment of silence crept upon them. This time however it was Sandry who broke it. "Briar?" "Hum?" "Can I tell you a secret?" "Sure." "I know that I must be the one that the people come to when they want security and hope but...I'm just so afraid." Tears welled in her eyes as she whispered her confession.  
  
The next thing Sandry knew she was nuzzled deep in Briar's arms. "It's alright Sandry. You don't have to be strong all the time. You're people won't hate you for it." "Briar..." Sandry breathed as she broke down and cried into his chest. "Sh... It'll be all right. You'll see." Briar comforted her, stroking her hair.  
  
All his thoughts of anything else were quickly erased, all that he cared about right now was Sandry. His foster-sister Sandry, his beautiful, wonderful, kind foster-sister Sandry.  
  
@~@~@~@~@~@~@~@~  
  
Half an our later the men and Briar were all to leave for the port where they would there march to the gates where the enemy was waiting for them.  
  
They were all supplied with horses, swords, and other small blades (not the Briar needed any more) and armor. It was only slight armor, a shield, breastplate and helmet but that was about it. They had used all the spares and Frostpine, Kirel and Daja had been working like maniacs trying to make more.  
  
They all said goodbye to each other, smiles forced, tears being held back. Briar hugged each of them in turn, starting with Rosethorn and ending with Sandry. Their embrace seemed a little longer then the other's had been.  
  
"You better keep your promise." Sandry said, half-serious half ready to brake down. "Don't worry I will, s' long as you keep yours." "I will." She smiled one last smile to him. Then he mounted his horse, keeping his eyes on Sandry. Their eyes locked, not wanting to leave but to stay just that way forever and ever.  
  
"Briar! Catch up boy!" Frostpine yelled, they were already a few yards ahead of him. "Coming!" He answered. "Hyah!" He kicked his speed and off he went into the distance.  
  
Sandry watched as he first shrank into a dot, then a speck, then...nothing at all. Her Briar was gone, for now at least.  
  
Reluctantly she turned around and went up to her room where she sat on her bed thinking. Niko had said that they might be ale to write to back and forth. And Briar was still close enough for them to connect mind-to-mind.  
  
However they had decided that they were going to led Briar contact them first, they didn't want to distract him when he should be concentrating.  
  
So to preoccupy her she started writing him a letter. She tried not to make it too mushy, but she couldn't help it. She figured that he would take it as her worry of him, as a friend." 


	3. Letters

It was Briar's fifth day marching and his feet were screaming at him. They were taking a break during the hottest part of the day for mid-day and so that they weren't all too exhausted when they actually got to the battlefield. He decided it was time to write a letter to the girls, so he took out a piece of paper and a piece of charcoal that served as a pencil and started writing.  
  
He was had just finished a letter to Sandry when his fingers stopped dead. What should he put as an acknowledgement? He decided that it would be safe to just write From Briar, then he decided that it didn't sound formal enough. Keep safe, you're friend Briar. No, that's no good either. Finally he sighed and wrote Love Briar. He was going to seal the envelope when he thought better of it and changed it back to keeping you in my thoughts Briar. Again he tried to seal the envelope and failed because of second thoughts. 'She's my foster sister, she's not going to care if I put love.' He told himself as he erased the second layer of pencil scratches from the paper and wrote love Briar in its place. He took a look at it. Now he was ashamed of the untidiness of it. 'Sandry will understand.' That same voice told him. So he finally sealed the envelope and put it back in his pack.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Sandry had sent her letter to Briar a few days ago and still didn't know if he had gotten it yet or if he was even thinking of her or if he was... No, think about something else. She told herself. She walked down to the winding circle mail room where all the mail that went in and out was kept.  
  
She stepped up to the counter and asked. "Has there been any mail from the Nothern region from a Briar Moss?" The small thin old man at the counter smiled warmly at her and turned around and chuckled. "My Lady, this is the fifth time this week that ye' have come to me asked if there be any letter from Master Briar. Does though love him for ye' surely act it." Sandry turned red and looked away. "I-I." She stammered, trying to think of something to say to that but it was as if some had tied her tounge up with something. The old mad chuckled again. "Well today I actually do have a letter from this young man of yours." Sandry's embaressment was erased the moment the words had parted with his lips. If her manners hadn't told her against it she would have snatched it out of his hands.  
  
Clearly he could see her anxiousness because he smiled warmly again and handed her the paper. "Thank you." She yelled back as she tore from the room, she wanted to get home and read the letter as soon as possible. He smiled and laughed in an voice that had been used for many, many years. "Ah the days of youth and the feel of one's first love." He said to himself as he went back to the long and endless task of sorting out the letters and packages.  
  
Sandry slowed down and walked the rest of the way as she read. The letter was tyed up with green silk and smelled musky and like fresh dirt, just like Briar, and it read:  
  
Dear Sandry,  
  
I miss you and everyone else a lot, I hope everything is ok back home. Say hi to everyone for me ok? We've only been on the road for five days and all of them have been spent marching and my feet already feel like they're going to fall off! I don't see why we have to save the horses for battle.  
  
Sandry giggled as she read the last line. That was so like Briar, to point out the worst thing about a situation first and then make it not seem so bad by making it funny.  
  
We only stop for breakfast, mid-day, and at night. In the middle of the day when it's the hottest we get a break thankfully however. That's how I found the time to write this letter. You would like this country Sandry, it's filled with wild flowers off all different kinds of shapes and sizes and colors. I pressed one and enclosed it with this letter, It will probably be a little dry and dead-ish by now but someday I promise I'll take you to see the real alive ones. It's not so lonely with Neko, Frostpine, Kirel and Crane here but it's sill not the same. I never thought I'd say it but I miss all of you girls' nagging. You know what else I miss? Grosses cooking, the cook his is awful, what he served last night I don't even think that Little Bear would have eaten. My stomach is aching for even some of you're cooking, and no offence but that's pretty bad.  
  
Oh! I'm going to have to get back at him for that when he gets back! Sandry thought, trying to be angry with him but she just couldn't. She found herself smiling instead.  
  
Anyway that pretty much raps it up so far. I hope this will be all over soon.  
  
Love, Briar Moss  
  
Sandry read the last line over and over again. Trying to decide what he had meant by it. Judging by the paper he had tried a few different endings and decided that this one was the best fitting. After a few more minutes of pondering she decided to let it go and went out into the gardens. She had been spending a lot of time there lately.  
  
She walked to the place where she and Briar had sat together not all that long ago. And she wondered if he too still thought about that day.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
The next day when Briar was going to drop off his letter at the next designated town there was a letter there for him from Sandry. He read it while marching the next day. It smelled so nice, just like the purfume that Sandry sometimes put on, just like Sandry herself, the letter read:  
  
Dear Briar  
  
I miss you so much, we all do, and I can tell that you're Shaken misses you too. How is everything going? I hope you're getting along well. Have you fought any battles yet? Well in case you have and need some cheering up I wrote some things about you're garden here and something Little Bear did recently.  
  
'I should have known she would do that, always trying to make people smile as much as she does.' Briar thought to himself, and he did smile.  
  
Well there are a lot more of those fairy wings you told me about now, and all the vegetables are doing great. Rosethorn has kept everything in order but the plants seem miss you as much as we do. Anyway yesterday around mid- day Little Bear came running into the kitchen while Tris, Daja and I were baking and apparently he wanted to help too. So he stood up on his hind legs and pushed over a bag of flour. It went everywhere, including the bowl next to it. We all looked like a bunch of ghosts and believe it or not right then a messenger came from Dedicate Moonstream. Well you know Little Bear he just had to go and great the poor fellow himself. Normally Little Bear frightens them when he's just his normal looking self but when that messenger saw a huge dog ghost he screamed a ran away faster then you could have ever imagined. Well as if that wasn't enough Little Bear chased after him to see what was wrong with him. Eventually he ended up in the harbor, drenched and frightened. A fisherman had to fish him out of the water with his nets. Well I hope that cheered you up. I'll look for more amusing things that happen around her and watch the plants more carefully so that I can give you a better report next time.  
  
Keeping you in my heart and prayers, Lady Sandraline Fa Toren  
  
Briar sighed longingly and tucked her letter into his tunic. He wanted to be home so badly.  
  
Alright I know that one wasn't very long but hey, neither were the others. ^__^ by the way I'm working on some Fan Art for this story, but it's kind of a spoiler for later chapters which is ok because by the time they're posted I'll have the pic's done hopefully. Anyway if u're interested e- mail me an let me know cuz I'll be happy to send to them. F.Y.I it's modeled after Japanise Anime so it's not half bad Peace out ^___^ 


	4. Tradgity strikes hard and fast

It was one of the happiest days of Sandry's life, word had spread that the battle that the boys had been fighting had ended. The pirates had apparently retreated after the third day of battle. Sandry was the first one to get the message of they're return and after she finished reading she yelled up to everyone else and dashed out the door. She was on her way to the main gates where they would soon be marching in and home, running as fast as her legs would carry her.  
  
She felt so happy and so light that it was like flying. She stood there panting in front of the gates trying to catch her breath and smooth her hair back down. Finally the huge wooden doors creaked open, the soldiers came in two by two. Some were on horse-back some weren't. Some were carrying much more baggage then they had brought. Sandry walked down the middle of them and looked for Briar. With each face she looked into that wasn't Briar's she got a sense of...pity? Sadness? Guilt? 'What's wrong with them, they just won a huge battle.  
  
Sandry's heart started beating faster and it hurt more and more as she got closer to the end of the line and still hadn't found Briar. Then a foul stench filled her lungs, the smell of the dead. She could now see the very end of the line, and at the end two or three horses were pulling a carriage with corpses in it.  
  
She started panicking when Neko, Frostpine, Kirel, and Cranes' horses came in the horizon. "No..." She whispered, fear dripping from her words and she shook her head to emphasis the word no.  
  
The whole kingdom of Emelan was summoned to the memorial for the dead. Sandry, Tris, Daja, Lark, and Rosethorn were all dressed in black long dresses with dark veils over they're faces. They along with Neko, Frostpine, and Crane were on the Dukes right hand side. The service was at night, and it was out in the court-yard. Tris had asked the stars to shine extra bright tonight, and there were candles everywhere. Sandry hardly heard what her uncle was saying until Moonstream stood up and said. "The east battle was greatly fought. And it seems that they're arsenal at sea has also retreated, we owe a thank you to all who died for us. However there was one...one very brave young man. Tonight as we think of the dead, let us keep Briar Moss in our hearts. He was a...." She paused to swallow and choke back some tears. "A great mage. Better then most of us here at Winding Circle could ever hope to be at his age."  
  
She paused again. "He used his magic to protect many of our worriors from death and damage. We never found his body, however we shall give him a memorial stone anyway." She then bowed and stepped down from the podium. It was too much for Sandry, silent tears fell from her eyes. "Poor Sandry." Everyone thought, all of them holding back tears as well had now let them go and let them fall.  
  
The memorial was followed by a banquet to celebrate the victory. Tris and Daja tried very hard to get Sandry to eat something but she would not. "I'm just not all that hungry guys." She told them, forcing a smile that wouldn't even have fooled someone who hadn't known Sandry ever before. They gave up and went to go talk.  
  
Sandry sighed. Her uncle came over to her and sat next to her. The old man looked at her will love and affection. "Sandry you must not dwell on the death of your friend. Do you really think that he would want you to be miserable?" Sandry thought about it for a moment before answering. "No, Briar would have wanted me to be happy. It's what he'd want for everyone."  
  
Later that night everyone was settling into bed at Discipline. Soon the sound of slumber had possessed the house and everyone was wandering in the land of dreams. Everyone but Sandry, try as she might she just couldn't seem to fall asleep. So as quietly as she could she crept into Briar's room, or what had been his room. She looked around it sadly, remembering so many things. When he had had that nightmare about Flick she had been the first one there by his side.  
  
His Shaken was right where he left it, on the window sill. It seemed sad too, where's Briar? It seemed to ask. Sandry walked over to it and petted it's tiny leaves just as Briar had so many times before. "He's gone now, he...he can never come back." Tears fell from her eyes as she spoke those horrible words. She picked the small plant up and took it to Briar's bed. He had finally gotten out of the habit of sleeping in a heap of blankets on the floor. She sat down and held the plant close to her by it's round bowl. "Why...why have you gone where I can not follow?" She whispered, her tears fell and rolled off of the Shaken's leaves. As if it was crying with her, sharing in the morning of they're friend.  
  
Sandry sent her magical self into the plant, something she had never done before. Everywhere there was blinding magic, and most clearly of all was Briar's magic. The magic that had bind him to that small tree. The magical Sandry rapped herself around the magic Briar, never ever wanting to leave.  
  
It was a weird sensation, it was as if Briar himself was there. It was almost as real as her dreams but...even more so now. She could see him, she could feel him. She looked touched him and he felt solid. The magical Briar pulled her into a deep, deep embrace, he never wanted her to go either.  
  
In the real world the real Sandry fell over on the bed sideways, she Shaken sill in her hands, she curled around it. Sandry was so caught up in her fanticy that she barely noticed the very small sliver of magic that led away from the rest.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
'Where am I?' Briar wondered. 'Damn...my head hurts.' He tried to grasp his magic but as soon as he did it slipped threw his fingers like sand or water. 'What the-?' Briar opened his eyes and he saw...bars? Yes, like the kind the put in cells. 'Am I dreaming?' He sat up and found it was very hard, for one he was soar all over and weak too, it seemed like days sense his last meal, and for another he had big metal chains attached to his wrists holding him down. Then he remembered. 'That's right, that pirate hit me over the head, and I went unconscious.' He took another look around him, everything was very dark looking and a musky smell was the clearest of the smells coming from this place. "But where am I?" "You're in the dungeons of Erasad." A wicked sounding voice answered. A tall, muscular man with an unshaved face, a head rap on his head and an eye patch stuck his head in the stall threw the gaps in the bars. "And believe me sonny there's no escaping.  
  
"What do you want with me?" Briar growled. "You'll see in good time." He answered. And sure enough the next minute Briar heard a door open. Then two men stepped forward, there was someone behind them, Briar could tell. The two men in front were at least ten feet tall, muscular and fat, both were bald. They wore simple breaches with nothing else and had long swords at each side.  
  
"Let me see him." Came a musical and pleasant voice from behind them. They stepped to the side reveling a woman. 'A woman?' Briar gapped in awe. Not just any ordinary woman apparently either. She wore a long red dress with frilly feathers at the ends near her feet, and never her chest where the red fabric stopped. Her sleeves were very long, they almost touched the ground, there were slits in them for her hands. She wore more of those feathers around her neck and it draped down her front and back. Her dark black hair was pulled up in a pony-tale that went to her waist, in her hair were flowers, on her fingers were rings, she also carried a fan. 'she's go money bag written all over her.' Briar thought.  
  
The lady smiled a toothy smile at him, her white teeth were clear against her red painted lips. "Open his cell." She ordered. The two big men did as she said. She walked into the cell and knelt down in front of him. "You're name is Briar Moss am I correct?" She asked sweetly. Briar could tell that she was at least thirty by the barely visible lines in her white skin. "Who wants to know." "You'll speak with respect when you're talking to her Highness you little rat!" The thin man from before growled at him. "Goken, that will be enough from you." Goken turned red with anger and then shut his mouth.  
  
"He deserves to know my name. It is Chicura, ruler of the native and wild lands of the Erasad." "Well in that case your 'highness'." Briar put much emphasis on the word, and bowed sarcastically. "You are correct in saying that Briar Moss is my name." Her smile only widened much to Briar's annoyance. "As for what you are doing here I require your help whether you are willing to give it or not." Briar glared at her. "And what kind of help will I be giving?" "Well you see dear word of yours and your friends powers have spread to even my part of the globe." She took her purse and opened it, taking out four pictures that looked very old. She showed them to him. "T-that's." His eyes widened slightly. "Yes. Daja the mage of fire, Tristan the mage of wind and weather, Lady Sandraline of the tread, and you, Briar Moss mage of the Green and the gardens." She put the pictures so that backs were facing him again, then she put three of them down on the ground next to her. "However, there is one of you in particular that I am most anxious to meet." She showed him the remaining picture. "Sandry? Why h-" Briar suddenly knew why. The lady laughed. "My you are indeed a smart one. Yes Lady Sandraline Fa Toren, great niece of the Duke of Emelan."  
  
"You're going to use me to get to her aren't you? Well sorry that little plan won't work. I'll just contact her threw our mind connect and warn her and everyone else." The Lady laughed again. "Go ahead, try it and see what comes of it." So Briar did, again he tapped into his magic and pulled on the link that connected him and Sandry. But as soon as he did a blinding pain came to him. He screamed out and fell back down against the wall. "W-what was that?" He stuttered clutching his head between his hands, his brows still fused together in pain.  
  
"That is my little protective shield, if you try to use your magic you will feel that every time." "D-damn you." He muttered threw clenched teeth. The lady's smile, into a look of sadness, fake sadness no doubt. She cupped one of Briar's checks in her hand and said, "You will do your part. With or without you I will get Sandry." Then she let him go and walked out of the stall. The two men that were apparently her body guards followed her in hot pursuit. The man named Goken closed and locked his sell again, but first he put some food and water next to Briar who munched it suspiciously. 'At least I know she's not going to poison me, yet.'  
  
When he had eaten half of the bread and drank half the water he sighed and leaned against the cold stone walls of his cell. 'Where are you Sandry? Please be safe, at least until I can escape from here.' With that he started making a plan that would either warn her, get himself out or die trying. 


	5. Reunion and escapes

While everyone was at the memorial the pirates had doubled back and were now surrounding the city. They were quietly slipping in one by one past the few guards who had been left on post. Soon there was at least one hundred running about the city, finding hiding places and laying in wait for the signal. Others were attempting to sneak into the main temple so that they could find a way to disable the shields that surrounded Winding Circle and the town. If those were destroyed then they could attack at sea as well. The signal they were waiting for was the first torch to be light on top of the wall. As soon as that was light it meant that the service and the celebration was over and almost all of the lights were out in the houses.  
  
The soldier from Erasad who was standing post on the tallest of the towers, who's job was to light the first signal, who's success was what they're plan depended on. After he saw half the lights go out, he stuck his two flint rocks together and a spark caught on the torch that he carried. That small flame spread on the oiled surface of the torch and it grew until it took up the entire top. He raised it above his head, his arm stretched as high as it would go.  
  
The person at the next post saw it and light his. Soon more small flames could be seen here and there among the town. He knew he had done his job, he let himself smile at his victory and then descended down the ladder. A war cry was let out and he knew the last had been light. Many more followed it, he put in his own and the town roared with the sound of thousands of people yelling.  
  
Sandry was still deep inside the Shaken when she felt her real body being moved. It was Tris, shaking her awake. She let go of the magic Briar and woke to the real world. "What is it?" "You have to hurry. The pirates weren't retreating they were setting a trap. You have to get out of her as fast as you can!" "Why me?" "Because you're the Dukes niece, they want you for ransom." Sandry put the Shaken back where she had got it, and followed Tris out the back door of Discipline. There was a small wagon waiting for her. Neko was driving it and there was a tarp over it to hide her. Tris helped her climb into it, tears welled in her eyes. "Be careful Sandry." "Don't worry I will."  
  
With that Sandry slipped under the cart and off Neko went. His goal was to get her as far away from the pirates as possible. People were already retreating into the temple, Neko thought that if they could slip into the crowd then they wouldn't be noticed.  
  
Sandry was having a rather hard time in the back of that cart, she got jostled around quite a bit and she had to bite her hand to keep from screaming every time she went flying into the sides. They were almost home, almost inside the castle. But then they came to a screeching halt. 'Oh no!' Sandry knew there was no way that they were in the temples already.  
  
"What's in the back of dat cart mister?" "Lets have a look see Crum." When they opened the lid Sandry was quite ready for them, so was Neko. He was already taking care of a few of them, holding them at bay with his magic. Sandry called to the tread in the two men's shirts and breaches, making them one, capturing them in a cocoon of cotton.  
  
"Go!" Neko yelled. Sandry nodded and ran for it. She could see the temples from here, they were so close, she was so close, but then... "Where you going girly?" Before she could call to her magic something had exploded and smoke crept up to her face and entered threw her mouth and her nose. Everything went dark and she fell to the cold hard ground.  
  
The soldier chuckled to himself and slung the limp girl over his horse, the swung his leg up and off he rode. 'Wait until her highness sees this. I'll get a promotion, maybe even an advance in my pay.' He laughed to himself as he rode threw the gates just as they were being closed. When he was out he blew a long horn that he had attached to his belt. It blew long and loud, loud enough for the others to hear it. They stopped raiding the houses and instead went into the second part of the plan.  
  
As soon as the first horn was blown and it's followers were heard across the land it meant that the girl had been found and captured and the lucky capture was already outside the wall of winding circle.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*  
  
When Sandry woke up she wasn't quite sure where she was. She was in a big bed with curtains all around it, the curtains were maid from some of the finest silk Sandy had ever seen. It along with just about everything else in the room was blue. Cautiously she slipped out of the bed, her feet touched a soft fluffy carpet made out of something she wasn't quiet sure what it was. As she looked around the room she noticed that it wasn't all that bad. In fact it almost looked homely.  
  
There were big glass windows on the East Side of the room, they're ocean blue curtains were already pulled back to let the sun stream threw. Each had a windowsill made of stone, wide and with cushions on them. 'Perfect for sitting and reading in.' She thought. On a table made of fine, polished wood there was a tray of food set out for her. Eggs, sausage, oatmeal and milk, all hot or cold as it should be.  
  
Sandry was still debating over whether or not to eat it when the door opened and a woman clad in a long blue dress. Her sleeves were short at the front of her arms but they draped down in the back, they almost touched the ground. Her dark black hair was pulled up in a loose bun on the top of her head, encircled by fresh alive flowers. On her fingers were rings, she also carried a fan.  
  
"Hello dear, it is lovely to see that you've woken up." She looked around the room and saw the untouched breakfast. "You didn't eat any of your breakfast. Are you not hungry?" She smiled warmly at Sandry, almost too warmly for her liking. "Please don't be afraid of me Sandry. The food is quite good really, I had my cook make it so there's no need to worry about it being poisoned." "H-how did you know I was thinking it would be poisoned?" The lady laughed.  
  
"I have special talents for knowing what people want and what they worry about. Much like your own." "What do you want from me? You can't fool me with that nice cover." "I should have known you would have more sense then most young girls." She sat down in a chair next to the table where the breakfast had been placed. "I suggest you eat your breakfast before I tell you anything thought. You look so thin and hungry that I could have sworn they had nabbed a street rat instead." Sandry took a chair at the end of the table from the strange lady and began eating. The food really was good actually, after the first bite Sandry realized just how hungry she had been. When she was full and there was nothing left on the plate she looked back up at the lady and gave her a 'alright are you happy now spill it' look.  
  
"Let me start with my name. Chicura, Lady Chicura actually. I am the ruler of the land of Erasad. You see my dear Sandry, to be quite flat out, I want Emelan. However I hate blood-sheds so I've thought up a plan. Your uncle may stay the ruler of Emelan as long as he live, however when it is your turn to take over you will hand it to me." "Oh really? And why should I do that?" Sandry asked stubbornly. "Two reasons I have for you actually. One, I have something that you care about dearly, two at this very moment a fleet of pirates and my soldiers are surround Winding Circle and Emelan's bays. As soon as my warriors on land disable the shield chains then there will be no hope for a peaceful capture of your uncle's lands."  
  
"Back up. What's this thing that I care about?" Chicura smiled warmly again and stood. "Shall I show him to you? Or would you like to see later?" 'Him?' "Now actually would be nice." "I hoped so. But first." She handed Sandry a some folded up cloths. "Put those on, we can't have you walking about it your night-gown now can we?" With that she turned around and closed the door, not locking it. Sandry quickly dressed, not caring what it was she was changing into. 'Him? What was that supposed to mean?'  
  
When she stepped out of the room again she was clothed in another blue garment, a long dark blue dress with long draping sleeves. The neck wasn't low but it was wide, so wide that a lot of her shoulders showed. There was a pair of burgundy shoes that looked pretty plain too. She was very anxious to see just what it was.  
  
Chicura led her down stair case after stair case until it they finally came to a stop at what appeared to be a dungeon. Cell after cell passed by until they came to one in the very end. "Open the door." Chicura ordered a man that was guarding it. "Yes'm" He mumbled. The wooden doors slowly creaked open, reveling the bars that hide behind it Sandry's eyes widened as they saw who it was laying on the floor. "Briar!" She cried, crashing to her knees as she held to the bars.  
  
Briar's eyes opened slowly, he shook his head once of twice, look at Sandry and he leaned up. Only to crash back down because there were chains attached to his wrists. He crawled as far towards her as the chains would allow. Which was thankfully close enough to take one of her hands in his. "Oh Briar it's really you, I thought you were dead, so did everyone else." She cried, cupping one of his checks with her hand, running her fingers to the back of his head and threw his hair, tears of happiness fell from her eyes. Briar wiped them away with his thumb. Both were too rapped up in the other to remember the other two people in the room.  
  
"So Sandry, let us go over your options. You could agree to my plan, and no one could get hurt. Or we could just torture Briar here until you agree, or the city could be taken by force. Which will it be? Of course I don't expect you to answer right now." Sandry looked from Briar to Chicura. "I'm staying here." She said firmly. "Of course. When you're ready to come back to you're room you're free to go. Goken will come with me so that you two can talk privately. I'll give you the key to Briar's stall, and the keys to the dungeon but realize that if you try and free him my guards will kill him the second the catch him. And they're a guard at just about every corner waiting for him to escape so if you truly care about him you won't try to help him escape. Also feel free to wander anywhere you like and if there's anything you need just ask one of the guards. " She smiled warmly at Sandry one more time before turning around, Goken following her grudgingly.  
  
As soon as they were gone Sandry's shacking hands quickly unlocked the bars that stood in the way of her and Briar. When she had pushed the door open wide enough for herself to slip in she did. Crashing into Briar's arms they fell back against the wall. "Oh Briar." She cried as tears fell from her eyes. Briar held her tightly as she clung just as tightly to him. "I thought I had lost you Briar, I thought you were gone forever." "Shh...It's alright." Briar told her, just as he had told her what seemed like such a long time ago when he had comforted her just before he left. "I told you I'd keep my promise and I did." He softly said as he stroked her hair with one hand and held her back with the other.  
  
After a few minutes later Sandry's sobs had secede and she pulled back to look at Briar again. He was smiling at here, that true, warm smile that only he could ever smile. "Briar are you alright? Did they hurt you?" She checked him over for bruises, not caring or noticing that his hand were still on her back. "I'm ok, just a little hungry and uncomfortable. They really should put softer stone on these floors. Sandry laughed softly, and looked into his eyes. "You stay here and don't go anywhere, I'll go get you some things that will make this place more comfortable." With that she gave him one last hug as if a promise that she would return and to make sure that he was real.  
  
Briar's hands slipped from her slender waist and he watched her as she got up and ran in the other direction. "I have to think of a way to at least get Sandry out of here. If I could get some idea of where we are exactly..."  
  
When Sandry came back with some food, a blanket and some pillows Briar almost had everything together in his mind perfectly. First she unlocked him from the wrist holders, as he rubbed his raw flesh he said, "That's a lot better, thanks Sandry." Then he whispered very quietly in her ear. "We have to talk in our minds I got a plan." Sandry nodded and before Briar could warn her she was reaching for her magic. "No Sandry!" Briar quickly snatched her magic link from her, again the pain came to him.  
  
"Briar!" A concerned look came to her face as she put her hands on his shoulder, a jolt ran threw her and she let go. "What was that? Are you alright?" "Yeah, I'm sorry, I should have warned you about the barrier before I told you to talk mind to mind." "When I touched your shoulder I felt...something weird, like a shock or something." Briar took his hand from his head and took hers. "Did it hurt bad or was it just like when Tris gets mad?" Sandry smiled and rapped her fingers around his hand. "It was some what in that middle. Did it hurt you really badly, you looked like you were in a lot of pain." "It's not that bad the second time." "Second time?" "Yeah, I was trying to contact you the first time I met Chicura and she told me her plan."  
  
"Now lets get out of this cell so we can talk." Sandry nodded, picked up the food she had brought, and two pillows and carried them out with her. As Briar at the food they discussed they're plans. "Ok, here's what I figured we could do. If you could find a library then we could get a book of maps of this country. If it's near the water, if it's on a desert, and how far away it is from Emelan." Sandry nodded and Briar continued. "Once we know more about the castle or what ever it is we can get a better idea of how we can escape." "There were a lot of books in my room, and I think I remember there being a garden just below it." "That's good."  
  
Briar stood up, Sandry followed him. "You should get back to your room and hurry. If we can get out of here while the moon is still new that will help a lot." "Why if its new?" "Because then we have a better chance of not getting seen." "Oh." Sandry smiled. Briar walked back into the dark cell, Sandry was closing the bared door when she stopped, ran inside and gave him a quick and tight hug and then finished closing the door. Briar watched as she left then when she was out of the dungeon he settled down on the blankets Sandry had brought him and sighed. If anything went wrong he wasn't sure that he could convince Sandry to go on without him.  
  
Sandry came back a few hours later with some books in her hands. They sat together on the blankets and pillows looking over the maps and deciding that the best way to get back home. "Alright the way I see it that if we can somehow convince Chicura to let me out of here and stay in your room we can climb down the west window into the tree you told me about, threw the gardens and out threw the river drain into the harbor. There we can get a boat and row out to the next town. I have a plan to get us into Emelan after we get to the mire." "Let me take care of getting you out of here." Sandry told him, already thinking of what she was going to say and how she was going to say it. They ripped out a page from one of the most modern books so that they could get around later.  
  
Sandry tucked the page into her dress where no one could see it. Then she yawned and fell against Briar's shoulder. "You ok?" He asked. "I'm fine, I'm just tired and hungry I guess." "I thought you might be." "You should go get something to eat, then get some sleep." Sandry yawned again. "I think I'll sleep first." Briar chuckled and gently picked her up, along with the blankets they had brought out of the cell and place them in the corner. He placed her on the piled and watched as her eyes closed and she drifted into sleep. While she slept he couldn't take his eyes off of her, he stroked her check with his hand and stroked her hair. 'I wonder if after all this is over she'll love me.' He thought as he too drifted into sleep.  
  
When they woke up they were somehow closer together then they had started, Sandry's head was on Briar's shoulder again. She sat up and looked around her, what little light that shined from the outside was getting dim. "Stay here, I'll go get Chicura." She told him as he sat up and ran some fingers threw his messy hair. "Alright."  
  
Sandry came back a few minutes later with Chicura in tow. "What did you want to talk to me about dear? Have you made your decision?" "Not yet, so it seems that we will be spending the night here again. Therefore I wish that Briar stays in my room." "Why?" Chicura questioned one of her elegant eyebrows raised. "Simple, how do I know you won't take him in the night and show up the next day demanding that I choose right there and then? Also how do I know that you're not going to have him beat or something?" "I can assure you that that won't happen." She answered. "Rule one in being a leader, never trust your enemies."  
  
Chicura laughed. "I like your spirit child. Fine do as you please. I'll tell the guards of your plans." She turned and left the dungeons. As soon as she was gone Briar and Sandry gather up the blankets they had brought down, the books that were hidden in them and left. When the had sent up a bed for Briar the cook came in with some food. Both at little for they save some for the journey. Sandry packed it into a bag that she had found and hide it under the bed. Later that night Chicura came in to check on them and they were pretending to sleep. Quite convincingly actually. After an hour had gone by they got up and checked to see if the cost was clear. Thankfully there weren't and guards in the gardens. Sandry tied the sheets and blankets together to make a rope, and then tied that to the bed, Briar quietly opened the window and the slowly let they're latter down. It was just long enough to touch the bottom limbs of the tree.  
  
"I'll go first, that way if you fall I can catch you." "Alright." Briar slowly began to climb down the rope and down into the tree.  
  
"Sandry, hurry I think I hear someone coming." Sandry stuck her head out of the window and shimmied down as quickly as she could without making a lot of noise. Sandry told the bedding to go back inside the window, once it was safely back where it belonged she followed Briar down the tree. "Here's what we're going to do, we just have to get out of here bush at a time. We can't risk being out in the open for too long." "Right."  
  
Slowly they made their way across the gardens, they were almost out when they heard a horn blow. "Oh no!" Sandry whispered. "Quick run for it!" Briar took her hand and they ran as fast as their legs would allow. They could see the drain, it's bars were just barely wide enough for them to get through, then... "Hey! Stop!" Briar didn't stop, he kept running. Instead he called for the aid of all the plants around him. The whole garden came alive. Flowers threw pollen at them, trees and bushes were whipping their branches at them. "The plants have all gone mad!" "This is his work!" They yelled as they retreated from the garden.  
  
Briar smiled, thanked his friends and ran to the drain. Briar had to grab Sandry before she fell to the rocks below. "There's no way out!" She cried as she looked back and saw they were closing off the entrance of the drain from the wall above them. "We'll have to jump, it's the only way." He took her hand and they breathed in deep and jumped. Sandry closed her eyes and held onto Briar's arm. 'Please let us survive this.' She thought. 


	6. Love can be found in pain

It seemed like they had been falling forever when their bodies finally made contact with the ice cold water of the Erasad bay. Sandry opened her eyes and swam back up towards the top. Her lungs felt like they would burst any second now, her legs were getting tired, but she finally broke the surface of the water and inhaled a deep breath of cool clean air. She looked around for Briar and he was right next to her. "Sandry are you alright?" Briar gasped between breaths. "I think so." Sandry answered. "Come on, we still have to get to shore and get a boat before they find us again." "Right."  
  
They swam to shore, their cloths would have pulled them down but Sandry made sure they didn't. When they finally got to shore, they were panting again. Briar looked over his shoulder, his eyes widening slightly at what he saw. "Oh no, looks like we got more company." Sandry looked up and saw that he was right. Briar looked around for a way to get Sandry out of there as fast as possible. His eyes fell on a small rowboat, it looked just big enough for the two of them. "Sandry take that boat and get as far out onto sea as you can, at least until you can barely see the shore." "What? And leave you here by yourself? No way no how." She said stubbornly. "Sandry as soon as you get out there and I take care of these idiots I'll come after you." She him a 'you can't change my mind' look. Briar sighed and took one of her hands. "Listen, you have to trust me. I'm not going to let anything happen. You have to trust me." He looked desperately into her eyes. Sandry gave in, and ran to the boat.  
  
As her fingers slipped from his Briar felt his heart beat faster. He didn't have any of his weapons with him, they had searched and stripped him of them apparently. There were some odd looking trees that he had never seen before all along the beach. They had a few huge round heavy looking things growing on them. Briar could asked for their help if he needed too. He looked at his opponents, both carried a long stick with a blade at the end. He looked out of the corner of his eye and saw Sandy push the boat in the water and begin paddling. 'At least she's safe.' Then he saw a fallen branch near him, now he had something to protect himself with, and maybe even attack with.  
  
Once Sandry was far enough away so that she could still see that shore she stopped and turned around to watch. If Briar needed help she was there to give it. She watched as the two men attacked Briar first. 'Good it looks like he found a stick or something to hold them off with.' He blocked their attacks and sent back a few of his own. Sandry let out a cry of joy as he got one of them down. Now he only had the other to deal with.  
  
He dodged one, swung one, and dodged another. Then the man circled back and tricked Briar. With one swipe he cut his stick in half and sliced him in the stomach. "Briar!" Sandry called out to him, he fell to the ground on his knees holding his stomach with one hand. Sandry called to her magic and used it to turn her victim into a human cocoon. As she did this she rowed to shore. "No Sandry stay where you are!" "No! You're hurt, you can't swim all the way out here!" Briar staggered up as he argued with her. "I can and I will." With that he dove into the water, swimming just as fast as just as well as he would have it he hadn't had any wound at all. Sandry disobeyed him and rowed towards him.  
  
When he was at the boat he grabbed hold of the side and Sandry helped him in. She didn't let him go once he was safely inside she kept her arms around his shoulders. "You see what happens when I leave you?" She cried, hot tears forming in her eyes. Briar smiled threw the pain of the salty water in his wound. He pulled himself from her grip and looked at her. "Hey now, no tears. Everything is alright Little Weaver." He told her as he wiped her tears from her eyes before they had a chance to fall. Sandry smiled a small smiled and met his green almond eyes. They stayed locked for a few moments and Briar's hand fell from her check to her shoulder, then he took it off completely.  
  
"Did any of the luggage survive the fall?" He asked. Sandry pulled the bag out from inside her dress and opened it. Almost everything but the map was ruined, the food was soggy but the canteen of water was undamaged. There were no bandages however. "I don't have any bandages." She said sadly. Briar smiled sympathetically at her. "Don't worry about it, my shirt will do as a bandage for now and besides we have to get to the next town as soon as possible so we have no time to worry about cuts and scrapes." He unbuttoned his wet shirt, took it off and rapped it around his bleeding chest. Then he took one of the pairs of oars and started paddling. Sandry took the other, her eyes on Briar the whole time. In what little light there was she could see his muscles moving as he pumped the oars back and forth. 'He's so brave.' She thought. 'I hope I can be that brave someday.'  
  
It took them about an hour to get to the nearest town. They quickly found and Inn and rented a room. They only had enough money for one. Sandry helped Briar onto the bed, his wound was giving him trouble. He moaned slightly as she sat him on the bed and made him lay back. 'He probably bleed too much.' She decided that he would be the one in the bed tonight. She asked one of the maids for some warm water, a clean cloth, and a bandage. After she returned with the things and exited the room Sandry got to work.  
  
She gently undid the knots in his shirt that he had tied to keep it on, now stained with blood. For the first time she saw the actual wound. It was like a horizontal line down his chest, starting in the middle and going across at an angle for about six inches. The wound itself wasn't very deep, just deep enough though. She placed the cloth in the water, then rung it out and carefully wiped the blood from his golden-tan skin. Briar watched her hands move in the light the fire in the hearth gave off. Every now and then the water would sting and he winced but he hide it from Sandry. 'She feels guilty enough already, no reason why I should give her more to worry over.' She asked him to sit up, and he obeyed. As gently as before she passed the role of bandage cloth around and around his stomach. Her skin brushed against his every now and then and when it did her heart started to beat faster then before and a jolt of electricity when threw her veins.  
  
"There." She said as she merged the cloth into one. He lay back down and closed his eyes, running a blind hand over her work. "Not bad, I don't think I could have done better myself." He told her, one the corner of his mouth twisted up in a smirk. Sandry smiled sadly at the complement and ran her fingers threw his hair. She took his shirt and flattened it out again, as she was shaking it something fell from it. 'A letter.' She picked it up and opened it curiously, her eyes widened ever so slightly as she read the first line. "This is the letter that I sent you." She said quietly as she ran her fingers over the wet, a little torn, a little blood stained edges of the letter that she has sent him. "What?" He asked, he had heard her say something but he wasn't quite sure what it was. "The letter I sent you, you kept it. I thought that it would have been lost by now." Briar smiled his eyes still closed. "Nope." Sandry returned his smile, shaking her head she went back to cleaning his shirt.  
  
When she was finished she sat back down next to Briar on the bed, her eyes fell on the bandage that already had lines of red visible through it. A frown crept onto her face as her eyes scanned his face for any signs of pain or hurt. The sadness in her eyes deepened as she found some. "I'm sorry Briar...I could have taken care of them right away but instead I was foolish and didn't think about how you were going to defend yourself." She whispered sadly. "It's all my fault you got hurt, and it's my fault that you're even in this mess. I'm no help to anyone." More tears formed in her eyes as she said those painful words.  
  
She gasped when she felt something-warm brush against her check. Briar had opened his eyes and was rubbing her check with his thumb. "Shh...You're wrong. You were a lot of help back there. You were a lot of help just now." He sat up, a slight look of pain on his face and rapped his arms tightly around her. "Don't you go blaming yourself for this. It wasn't your fault, don't you ever question that." He whispered in her ear. Shivers ran up and down her spin as she felt his breath on her skin. "That oaf could have done a lot worse if you hadn't turned him into a rug." He stroked her hair and settled back down on the bed. "You need to get some rest, we have to leave very early tomorrow." Sandry didn't respond but she tried to pushed herself out of Briar's arms only to find that he still had a firm grip on her back. She blushed and asked. "Briar are you....Asleep?" No answer. She looked at his sleeping face and wondered what had just happened there. She lifted his arms from her back, got off of the bed and pulled one of the spare blankets up on top of him. She spread hers out on the windowsill. Like the ones in the room Chicura had put her in it was just big enough for someone to lay down on. She watched Briar until her eyes closed and she drifted of into sleep.  
  
~*~*~*~*~ Sandry's dream~*~*~*~  
  
She was walking through a forest, blossoming trees bloomed all around her. Birds chirped overhead, and a gently wind rusled the leaves above her head. 'Wow...It's so beautiful.' She whispered. She nearly jumped when she felt two hands wrap around her waist and pull her close. "Who is that?" She tried to say, but she had no voice. The mysterious person spun her around so that she could look at him. She couldn't see his eyes, they were hidden by the gleaming white light that flooded the forest. He was smiling at her, a warm wonderful smile that made her melt inside. 'I know that smile...' She thought.  
  
He leaned down and kissed her. "Briar..." She whispered longingly, as they're lips parted. The dream Briar smiled wider, and leaned his head against hers. "I love you." He said. Then all of a sudden the sky went dark, a cold strong wind picked up. "What's happening?" Sandry asked. The plants began to wilt, and the birds flew away.  
  
Sandry was starting to get scared. Briar was about to take her in his arm when blood spurted from his chest. "Ah!" He screamed and fell backwards. "Briar!" Sandry knelt beside him, more cuts appeared on his body, blood trickled from his mouth. His eyes went dark, and he whispered. "San...dry..." Then his head feel to one side. "Briar!" She cried, tears falling from her eyes, she reached out for him and he disappeared. The now barren and dry earth swallowed him up into a black obis. It swallowed Sandry too, she was falling, falling for ever and ever. Then...*Crash!*  
  
Her eye opened wide and she felt the cold hard wood of the floor at the Inn. She had fallen from the windowsill, her breath came out fast and raggedly. She didn't even notice Briar was beside her until he put a hand on her shoulder. Sandry jumped and had to bit her tongue to keep from screaming. "It's alright, it's just me." He said, his voice soft and gentle. Sandry met his eyes, his full of concern, hers of fear. She pushed herself off the floor and flung her arms around his neck. "Oh Briar you're ok!" She cried, her head nuzzled in his neckline. Briar blushed a little. 'You'd think after so much closeness I'd be use to it by now.' He thought as he rapped his arms around her and held her tight. "You had another nightmare didn't you?" Briar asked gently. "Uh-huh." Sandry answered, her voice a little muffled by his shoulder. "Do you...want to talk about it?" Sandry shook her head. "It's alright, all that matters is that it didn't happen." Sandry pulled back a little to look at him. "What time do you think it is?" "It's probably one, give or take an hour or two." They're faces were very close, Sandry could feel his breath on her face. "Oh..." She whispered, as they got closer. Then a sound like someone knocking loudly reached their ears and they pulled apart. Quietly they crept to the door of their room and put their ears to it so that they could listen.  
  
"We got orders from her Highness to search this place for two fugitives." "How do I know you really are royal guards? You could be thieves trying to rob me." They heard the Inn keeper say. "I won't permit your entry." The next thing they heard was the sound of flesh being torn and blood spurting. Sandry gasped and covered her ears so that she couldn't hear him gurgling on the blood coming from his mouth and his agonized last sounds. "Fool." One of men said. "Quick we have to get out of here." Briar whispered. He grabbed his shirt and quickly put it on, while Sandry straitened the room so that it looked like no one was ever in there. Briar stuck his head out the door, the coast looked clear. He grabbed Sandry's hand and they made a run for the door. They went out into the street and nearly collided with more guards. "They're all over the place!" Sandry said through the mind path. "I know, but we have to get out of this town, it's no longer safe." So just as they had dodged around in the bushes they went threw the town, hiding and running, hiding and running. Until they came to the edge of the town where there was a thick wild forest. Briar snuck into the house they were hidden behind and came back out with some knives, and a dagger. "These might prove handy later." Then they tore for the forest, hoping and praying that no one would catch them between the house and the first trees of the dark forest.  
  
They stopped running after a few minutes and they were sure that they were far enough away from the town. "The *huff * that was a close one." "Yeah." Sandry looked around her and began shivering. 'T-this is just like the forest in my dream. Dark and lonely.' Briar saw that she was shivering and a concerned look spread across his face again. "What's wrong?" "This place, it's.... just like the forest from my dream." Briar took her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. "Don't worry, everything is gonna be alright." Suddenly a wolf howled. Sandry yelped and jumped closer to Briar, clinging to him in fright. Briar protectively put an arm around her and called the nearest stick to him. 'I don't want to kill them, just keep them off.' He listened for any sounds and any more howls. They could see yellow eyes sticking out of the dark forest around them. An owl hooted, a twig snapped, then there was more silence. "Briar there's nothing I can do against animals." Sandry said mind-to-mind. "Don't worry, I'll protect you I promise." He whispered in her ear. Sandry nodded and much of her fear evaporated. Briar would never let anything happen to her.  
  
Briar listen for a few more minutes, bent down, picked up a rock and threw it somewhere. A yelp was heard and was then followed by growls. Briar shoved Sandry away from him and at that moment a wolf leaped at him head on. Briar used the stick that he had called, it was a long sturdy stick like the one that he had used to fend off the guards with, and batted it aside. It yelped again and slammed into a tree. Briar fought off more of them, whacking they're heads, legs, paws. Then he heard Sandry scream. He whipped around and saw her hanging from a tree branch, desperately holding onto it, there were three wolves below her, and they were all taking turns snapping at her feet, which weren't more then a foot above they're jumping range. The branch was starting to break, it hadn't been very sturdy. Briar sent his magic into it and strengthened it, he also asked the trees and plants around them to keep her save, and they were very happy to oblige.  
  
Finally the wolves retreated, Briar smirked triumphantly and went to help Sandry down from the tree. He told the tree to let her down, it did only instead of putting her down gently it let her fall. She let out a cry of surprise as she fell for a few seconds and then Briar caught her. The two of them fell to the ground in a pile. Sandry had landed on top of Briar, her head pressed into his chest, and they're uper body's overlapping. Sandry pushed herself off of him when she heard him moan. "Briar are you alright?" Sandry asked, concern spread over her face. He sat up and fought to keep the pain from his face. "I'm ok." Her eyes fell on his shirt, there was a new dark shiny spot on his bandages. It the hurry he had forgotten to button his shirt up. "On no, Briar your wound re-opened." Her hands feel on his bare chest and she lifted the bandages to find that his healing wound had indeed re-opened and now more a little more blood was trickling from it. "I'm so sorry." Briar took her hands in his, for what seem like the millionth time that night, rubbing her small hands with his thumbs. "Don't worry about me. Right now we have to think about getting to Emelan, I hate to be the bearer of bad news but without you Chicura might just attack anyway, she had enough soldiers on land and at sea and by now they probably had the shields disabled." Sandry looked into his eyes and she knew that that he was right, no matter how much she hated it she knew he was right. "I know, but how are we going to get there if you're injured. I won't let you travel while you're in this condition, and don't try and tell me that it's just a scratch and that you can handle it when you're actually in pain." Sandry leaned her head on Briar's chest and nuzzled her head into him. "Please think about yourself for once." She pleaded. Briar sighed, let go of one of her hands and replaced it on her back. "Fine, you win." He turned his head to the east and saw the first rays of the sun peak threw the trees. "We'll rest until noon, then we can keep going again. This forest looks dark enough to hide us even in the day." Sandry nodded her head, still on his chest she realized and pulled away from him again. "I was afraid that your wound would re-open. You should rest as long as you can." "If I had my Mage-Kit then it could be healed and we could be on our way." Briar replied. He looked around at some of the trees and saw one that looked like it was in good shape. "We can't sleep on the ground with those wolves out, we can sleep in a tree for now." He stood up, taking Sandry with him and went to the tree that he had spotted earlier. He put some of his magic into it, making its branches grow in a shape that could hold them so that they couldn't fall. "I'll go up first so that I can help you." When Briar was at the top he was surprised when he looked down and saw that Sandry was close behind him. "I didn't climb to the top of that roof for five years for nothing you know." She said as she sat down next to him, smiling. Briar smiled too, and for the first time in a while the two of them laughed. And when they're laughter has subdued Briar lay down against one of the branches and Sandry lay next to him. Sleep came to them quickly even though it was almost morning.  
  
Meanwhile back in Emelan.  
  
Lark sat in a chair next to the window in the Temples. "I hope Sandry is alright, oh Mila please let her be safe." "Perhaps she's with Briar." Lark heard a voice behind her say. It was Rosethorn. "Rosy how can you think that?" "I don't mean that I think she's dead. I was just thinking that perhaps Briar isn't either. If neither is dead I hope they're together." Lark starred at her friend for a few minutes and then nodded. "I never did truly think that our Briar was dead." Rosethorn sat down next to Lark and but a comforting arm around her best friend's shoulder. "They have survived much worse. I know that they will return safely."  
  
Ok this was longer then the last one, and hopefully better. By the way: THE FAN ART IS STILL OPTIONAL TO ANY WHO WANT TO SEE IT. ^_^ I'm not yelling, I just need to get u'r attention. Please please please let me know if u want to look at it. ^--^ I'm sorry I'm just soooo excited. This is like the first time I've ever done Sandry and Briar before. I'm working on Inu+Kagome, Seto+Tea, Ron+Hermiony so...^___^ 


	7. Of heros and Sacrafices

It was almost midmorning and Briar still hadn't found a good place for then to sleep where they wouldn't' be seen yet. It seemed that all there was in this forest was trees now, and while they would be very helpful in a tight spot they weren't very hiding in. Their branches were thick and almost blocked all the sunlight. Briar hoped that somewhere they could find a cave, once he found one he could make bushes to hide the entrance.  
  
There was another thing that was on his mind however, Sandry was falling further and further behind.  
  
"Sandry let me carry you, please you're exhausted." She slowly shook her head and took another step.  
  
"I'm not a weakling, I can make it till we find...the..." Her eyes started closing and she fell forwards. With speed like a bolt of lighting newly born from a thundercloud Briar caught her, her torso against his and his arms on her back.  
  
"That's it I'm carrying you."  
  
"But..." Came her weak reply.  
  
"No butts, I'm caring you until we find a cave." After uttering those words he removed a hand from her back to under her legs and he lifted her into the air.  
  
She rapped her arms around his neck and leaned her head against his hard chest. She sighed contently. 'I should enjoy this while it lasts.'  
  
Briar walked for about an hour more, along the way he pointed out various plants to her and she told him about the birds and the other animals they saw.  
  
Finally they found a place, Sandry had spotted a river and they decided to follow it. Where it lead to was simply beautiful, there was a waterfall and behind it was a cave. Briar didn't even have to do anything because the water hide it quite nicely.  
  
Briar grew some moss for them to sleep on, in addition to what was already growing there. Just as they were drifting to sleep Briar whispers. "Sandry...someday remind that this is one more place I must take you to see."  
  
"Now where could those two mages be? I'll just have to follow their magic currents." Katsuna said to herself as she rode through the forest on her horse. She tuned into the magic channel and searched for their magical waves.  
  
"Ah ha, so that's where you've hidden have you?" She smiled to herself as she kicked her horse, increasing it's speed.  
  
When Sandry opened her eyes there was no Briar next to her, she sat up wondered what to do. She crawled out the opening of the cave, it looked like it was late afternoon, almost twilight.  
  
She laughed at what she saw. Briar was standing in the water, his pant legs rolled up above his knees and his feet bare. He was trying to catch a fish but he wasn't succeeding. Every time he caught it it would wiggle out of his hands and back into the water.  
  
Briar looked up and shot her a, 'If you think this is funny why don't you get down her and try it yourself!' look. She held her sides and laughed harder.  
  
Suddenly Briar gave up his persuit of the fish and ran at Sandry. She screamed playfully and ran away, but he tackled her and down they went splashing into the cold water.  
  
They laughed until they had to stop and catch their breath. Only then did they realize their current positions, both turned red but neither made a movement.  
  
Briar looked back at Sandry and held her eyes locked in his. Their faces got closer and closer, eyes closed, lips touched. Then just before the kiss could take place a loud noise caught their attention and Briar quickly rapped his arms around Sandry and moved then out of the way.  
  
"What was that?" Sandry watched as the thing that had attacked them went further then caught on a tree. It looked like a net, but there was something strange about it.  
  
"It has a silver shine that thing's been magiced!" Briar concluded.  
  
"Very good, very good indeed I had heard that you could see magic and I was trying you skills." Came an emotionless voice from behind them.  
  
They whipped around and there was a woman sitting on the back of a horse. Her cloak was black, her hair and eyes were the same the only thing not black about her was her skin, it was pale.  
  
"I'm guessing Chicura sent you right?" Briar asked her, narrowing his eyes. "You don't have very many manors do you? We should introduce ourselves first. My name is Katsuna and yes mother has requested that I bring you back."  
  
"Mother?!" Both Sandry and Briar asked at the same time.  
  
'I don't know what this girl is up to but we're not going to stand still long enough to find out.' Sandry thought. She called her magic she reached for the women. But she pulled out a shield from beside her and Sandry's magic was stopped. "What?!" She exclaimed. "S-she blocked my magic with a shield!"  
  
"Be careful Sandry that shield is spelled too."  
  
Sandry saw it now it was acting as a "magic" shield. "Probably useless against a sword, or plants." Thought Briar. He put his magic into the trees around them and took them under his control. They lashed their branches at her. She jumped from her horse, dodging all of them. The horse however was impaled by one of them.  
  
'While her guard is down I'll attack again' Sandry tried to get her magic into the Katsuna's cloths but they were spelled too. Katsuan looked at Sandry, reached her hand into her tunic and pulled out a small ball.  
  
"You have been quite a nuisance already, seeing as how you're friend has lost me my horse and you are the one that mother requests I shall capture you now. I have wasted enough time playing." She threw it at Sandry, it expanded and it was another one of those nets.  
  
Briar ran in front of Sandry and the magic net caught his arm instead or her. "Heh is that the best you can do? I'd like to see you do better. Like this!" Briar called to all the plants around him and was going to have them attack Katsana but all of a sudden his arm started hurting like hell.  
  
"AH!" He cried out as he clasped a hand over his left arm. "Briar!" Sandry put her hands on his shoulders and held him to her.  
  
"What's wrong?"  
  
"It's that net, it's just like the one in the dungeon cells." He said as he tore it from his arm.  
  
"Very observant of you. I helped with those you know. But they are much stronger, these nets are only half as painful. However I still take great pride in them."  
  
She chased after Sandry, her speed was great.  
  
"Sandry!" Briar yelled as he joined the chase.  
  
"It's no use running from me Sandry, I will catch you. Feel my true power." Katsuna sent out physic waves at Sandry's feet, making her trip and fall.  
  
"Eek!" She cried.  
  
"I have you now." Katsuan got another anti-magic nets and thrust it at her. Sandry winced and covered her head with her hands.  
  
"Sandry!" Briar cried as he shielded her with his own body.  
  
"Briar!" Sandry cried out as he fell to the ground, the net had him caught from mid-arm to his calves.  
  
"Sandry run I can't protect you anymore."  
  
"I can't leave you."  
  
"Don't worry about me, just get out of here!" He found a way up and stood.  
  
"You're not getting away from me, take this!" She sent more physic waves at Sandry.  
  
Briar ran in front of her again and took the blow. "Ah!" He cried out in pain.  
  
"Briar!" She called as he fell to the floor for a second time.  
  
"N-now!" He yelled. "Not so fast." Katsura threw another one of her anti- magic nets at Sandry. Briar blocked her from it again, not caught by two of them. "Sandry!!" He yelled with what breath he could muster from his compressed lungs.  
  
Sandry looked at him with tears in her eyes, wide from the horror of watching him sacrifice himself for her over and over. She took a few steps back then ran the other way as fast as she could.  
  
Briar tried to get up but the two nets were keeping him so tightly tied that it was impossible. Katsura walked over to where Briar was standing, her red lips formed a frown. She opened her hand a another one of her physic balls appeared in it. "You've been quite a nuisance, playing hero." She said as she threw it at him, keeping a steady beam of it. "AHHHHHH!!!!!" He screamed, as the red light surrounded and tortured him. Finally he feel unconscious and lay still on the ground. "Well, at least I got one of you." Katsura said, now a smile took place of her frown.  
  
She made Briar float into the air then began walking in the direction of Chicura's castle.  
  
Sandry stopped running and fell to her knees, tears streaming down her checks. "Briar... I'm so sorry." She cried, she had heard his agonized cry, and Katusana's words.  
  
Then she wiped the tears from her eyes and looked up in determination. "Briar you've saved me so many times, now it's my turn." She turned around and ran back. She wasn't going to let something happen to him, not now...not after they almost...  
  
She touched her lips with her fingertips.  
  
'Briar...'  
  
OH I'M SOOOOOO EVIL!!!!! hehehehehe. End of the chappy end of the chappy. Ok I must have had some sugar sorry plz but it's 12:08 and my brain just blew a gasket. 


	8. A light where u do not look for one

I hope you all r happy, I have made a chapter and didn't kill off anyone important. No I really do hope u're happy, someone has to be...  
  
Sandry had been following Katsuna for a while and was wondering when she was going to stop. Briar had woken and was struggling against the magical bonds.  
  
"You and your mom aren't going to get away with this Katsuna, Sandry's free now." 'And safe hopefully.'  
  
"You really are quite naive aren't you? Do you really think that lordship over Emelen is really what we are after? Why we could have control of that puny city within seconds with our arm surrounding it. No we are after something much bigger."  
  
"How much bigger?" Briar asked with an arrogant tone to his voice.  
  
Katsuna looked over her shoulder at the boy who was suspending in the air beside her. "You will find out in due time young mage." She hesitated to look forward again, her eyes had gone sort of blank as if she was thinking nothing.  
  
"Tell me something now...Briar. What is this I see in your eyes, it glows. Unlike anger it shines with a golden soul. It sheds a light upon all your other feelings anger, sorrow, worry and this new something I have never yet seen something quite like it. You are angry for having been caught, sad that you have broken a promise, and worried for that wench. Yet this strange light is linked to all these feelings, and some memories too..."  
  
Her voice trailed off and her eyes glazed over.  
  
"What the hell are you talking about?" Briar glared at her, how could she know such things?  
  
Suddenly she smiled, and closed her now un-glazy eyes. "So, it is that girl mage, the wench whom has escaped me. She is the cause for all these emotions, her life force is also linked to this glowing light."  
  
Then she laughed.  
  
"Such memories you have of her, I have never encountered such memories."  
  
She smiled at his confused look. "Did I ever tell you I have a magic of my own? You have felt my strongest attack. But you have never imagined my strongest ability. I can read a person's mind, relive all their memories, make them remember things or forget things."  
  
She paused for a moment, turning he face away from him. "And it is in a person's eyes that I find their feelings. This light of yours is not completely strange to me, I have seen in it one other person."  
  
She left her sentence there and kept walking, raising her hand to the sky to block setting the sun from her eyes she sighed and stopped again.  
  
"I suppose I shall have to wait for morning to continue." Without looking she ran a hand at Briar and he fell to the ground.  
  
By the time she had lit a fire it was dark, there was a moon but it was not full. She laid her cloak down beside a tree, sat upon it and turned again to Briar.  
  
"I was pondering some of your memories and things seem quite clear to me. But perhaps they are so cloudy to you because you do not believe."  
  
"What do you-" Briar stopped, the strange woman was asleep.  
  
Sandry had been watching from a distance and had to bit her lip to keep from calling out Briar's name, and plant her feet in the ground to keep from running to him.  
  
Instead she inched her way closer and close, from tree to tree, until she was so close she could have touched him. But she was behind he and he could not see her.  
  
'How am I going to get him out?' Sandry wondered, her magic was useless against Katsuna's magic repelling cloth. Then she saw a knife that Katsuna carried at her waist.  
  
Quietly she slipped her hand over Briar's mouth. He jumped but must have recognized her scent and settled back down. She removed her hand and used it instead to start cutting through the fibers of the net.  
  
It was long tedious work and the skin on Sandry's fingers was beginning to raw but she had managed to cut his legs loose.  
  
He stood up with her help and the two ran out of there as quietly and quickly as they could until they got back to their hideout from before. Sandry cut the rest of the netting and as the last strand was being severed her hands began trembling Briar was almost free.  
  
Snap! The last thread was breached. Briar reached for Sandry and Sandry for Briar. Both met the other in the middle, Sandry's arms locked around Briar's neck, Briar's around her waist. Neither said anything...they just stayed like that for a few moments.  
  
Then Briar remembered Katsuna, he called to the plants where she was and used them to tie her up. "Keep her there until someone comes for her." He told them.  
  
Sandry felt him reach for his magic and watched what he was doing. They were too far away to see the real Katsuna of course but they could see Briar's magic do its work when they closed their eyes and focused.  
  
Then Sandry pulled away slightly and cupped the side of this head with her fingers. She looked into his eyes, both pares looked tired and both shone with a light that neither could see, but the very light Katsuna had spoken of.  
  
She felt his head, and ran her fingers gently through his hair. "Briar...I'm sorry." She whispered, still looking him directly in the eye.  
  
Briar didn't need to know why she was sorry for he knew it. To answer he leaned his head against hers and whispered in return. "You don't have to be."  
  
Then he kissed her forehead and stood up, taking her with him. "We have to be moving on, we're so close to it now." 'Almost too close for comfort.' He added in his mind.  
  
Sandry nodded and followed him as he turned and walked in the opposite direction, not sure where this "there" was but she trusted him and would follow him to the ends of the earth if she had to.  
  
Mean while....  
  
"Damn those mages!" Katsuna cursed as she struggled against Briar's plants, she had woken as soon as she felt something cold twist around her body. 'Mother will not be happy about this...' Then she lay still for a moment and a smile crosses her face. "However, this only proves that what I saw was true, this thing that Sandry and Briar feel for each other...it could only be...true love." 


	9. Tunnels and Old Friends

"So even you have failed me Katsuna? Tell me why was it that you did not sense Sandry when she was cutting Briar loose?"  
  
Katsuna looked to the floor, she had felt something but chose to ignore it.  
  
"You saw something didn't you? When you looked into his mind you saw something tell me what it was." Her mother asked, her voice more commanding then questioning.  
  
"Mother I know that our plan is not to be stopped because of something as stupid as...but please do not use it against them. The ransoming will work perfectly on it's own."  
  
Chicura smiled. "I will not, but it will be a last resort. We should have a back-up plan, these mages r not to be underestimated."  
  
"Come on Sandry." Brair led her through the shadows of the abandoned streets. They had made it out of the woods and were in a small town, all the lights were out and there wasn't a sound to be heard for miles around except the light snoring of the townsfolk.  
  
When they entered the town Briar snuck into another house and took some things from it too.  
  
He stopped them many times to hide behind a wall or under a bush or basket. There was no way that he would let anyone catch them, not here, not now and not after the hell he had gone through to get her there to safety.  
  
Now here he was, huddled in a dark alley with her clinging tightly to his hand. 'She's afraid.' He thought. He gave her hand a reassuring squeeze and they trudged on. All he had to do was get them to the tunnels. No one but street-rats and merchants that deled with illegal merchandize or drugs ever used them. None of Chicura's pirates or army would know about them either so he could either get her out of this country safely into Emelan.  
  
"Ok Sandry, just a little more and we're home free." 'Chicura will probably have guards on this side too, especially now that she knows we're so close to the wall. He told her mind to mind.  
  
She nodded in response.  
  
Briar checked once, twice, then again to see if the cost was clear. It was and they made a dash for it, as fast and as quietly as their feet could manage they ran for the small clump of bushes that hide the last entrance into tunnels for a few miles around. They dove into them, but as they did Sandry's dress caught on a thorn and she fell.  
  
"A-!" She started to scream before Briar clamped his hand over her mouth, picked her up and quickly jumped through the hole. He pressed them up against the wall, making sure that none of them showed in the moonlight that escaped through the bushes.  
  
Sure enough two pirates heard the muffled scream and went to look and see what had caused it.  
  
As Briar heard them come closer he pressed them closer to the wall and closer together. If they both hadn't been scared out of their wits they would be blushing at they're closeness.  
  
Neither breathed, nor dared to move while the two pirates looked around for them. "It musta' been some kinda wild animal. Come on let's get out a here." "I don't know. Dat didn't sound like no animal to me."  
  
They stayed around for a few more minutes and then they walked away.  
  
When Briar was sure that they were gone he and Sandry let go of the breaths they had been holding and slouched back away from the wall. "You ok?" Briar asked. Sandry pulled out her crystal.  
  
The small stone light up the small hole in the ground. Sandry's dress was torn and she had a cut on her arm that had bleed onto her dress. "Well...looks like we're going to have to get you some more cloths, and do something about that cut." Briar stated. He tore her dress even more to make a bandage, then dipped it into a bag of water that he had gotten from the house borrowed from. Gently he wiped up the blood from her arm, cleaning it to make sure it didn't get infected.  
  
Sandry tied the bandage herself, telling the fibers to make themselves one.  
  
He didn't look her in the eyes as he was working. When Sandry was taken care he took one of her hands and led her into the tunnel.  
  
Sandry was in awe, her crystal shown light over it all, sometimes that was not a good thing for there were definite signs that these had been the homes for many people at one time or another.  
  
It was like an underground highway. There were no other openings that were big enough to be entrances but there were a lot of small windows that let some of the light from outside in. Every once and a while the tunnel would open up and go two different ways but Briar knew where he was going.  
  
After a while Sandry asked, "Briar?"  
  
"Yeah." He answered.  
  
"Where are we?" Briar dropped her hand, turned around to look at her and the look in his eyes was so serious and almost cold that a chill ran up and down her spin.  
  
"Sandry before I tell you anything about these you must swear that you will never tell a single soul about them, not even Lark or Rosethorn or Tris or Daja or even write it down in that book you girls call a diary. This is very, very important, if anyone finds out that I brought a noble in here then it could mean death for the both of us, and who ever you tell."  
  
Sandry nodded solemnly. "I understand." The look his seriousness faded a lot but not all the way, at least he didn't look scary anymore.  
  
"This is a secret passage that was used by a native people a long, long time ago. Some Mire folk found it and used it as a way to smuggle themselves in and out of places. Many people got to using it as an escape route and a hide out. The farthest anyone has ever traveled in it is from Emelan to the cost of the beach on the other side of the continent. A lot of illegal things are smuggled threw here but it's also used to shelter people who must be hidden from their enemies. If the law found out about this then many people would be out of a home."  
  
Again Sandry nodded.  
  
"So what are we doing in them?" She asked. "Two reasons, one because it might be the only way to get you safely into Emelan, two because there was a rumor that there was an old and very dangerous passageway that led to the insides of the Duke's Castle. If we can get there then we can warn him about Chicura's plans." "Sounds like a good idea to me."  
  
"There's just one thing."  
  
"What's that?" Briar pulled her closer to him and whispered in her ear as if to make sure that if there was anyone around they wouldn't at least hear this part of they're conversation.  
  
"You can't stay a noble while you're down here, or you'll be killed for sure. I've been thinking of some good street names for you and I came up with a few good ones if you want to pick one. But first of all we have to get you out of those cloths, they look too nice even ripped to be owned by a street-mouse."  
  
"Mouse?" Sandry questioned with a teasing look on her face.  
  
"That's what the Thief Lord called a girl who wanted to join up one time. Besides you're a much better mouse then you are a rat because...well...rats are ugly and horrible creatures and mice are more...um...well they're smaller for one and they're usually cleaner for another...and..." Briar was just babbling on, his face turning pink from embarrassment.  
  
Sandry was trying her very hardest not to let him see her smile. But in the end she gave him a quick kiss on the check to shut him up but that only turned him redder even if she was successful in silencing him.  
  
Mumbling he took a big old looking shirt out of his new pack. "Here, change into this for now. It should be long enough." With that he turned around and faced the wall of rock and waited while she changed.  
  
A few minutes later Sandry said, "It's alright, you can look now." She held her old dress in one hand and her crystal in the other. Briar's eyes popped open. The shirt was just barely long enough to go half way down her thighs, she had torn her dress again to make a belt so that you could see her small waist perfectly and she had put her hair into a pony-tail. She giggled at his face and covered her smiled with her hands.  
  
"T-that...I...you..." He mumbled again, with a slight pause between each word. Then he shook his head viciously and said. "Lets put you're dress in here, we can't leave it here or people will get suspicious."  
  
"Right."  
  
A little further down the tunnel Briar put his hand out in front of her, stopping them before they walked out into the moonlight that shown in by a large hole in the roof.  
  
"What's wrong?" She whispered in his ear.  
  
"Put the crystal away." He told her.  
  
She eminently did as he said, not wanting her fear of the dark to be the cause of they're demise. After she stuffed it into her dress all she could see was the dirt that was exposed by the pale light of the moon.  
  
As if he could sense her fear Briar groped back with his right hand and took hers again. "Don't worry everything is alright." He took a step out into the light and held his other hand out in a peaceful way to show that he had no weapons.  
  
"Who are ya' and what do you want in these parts?" Care a gruff voice from the shadows, it sounded like it belonged to a women. Her sword, which had chinks in it, was the only thing that showed the rest of here was hidden.  
  
"Roach of the Thief Lord and Lace. We're just crossing over the boarder and mean no harm to anyone." Briar answered.  
  
"Lace?" Sandry asked in a teasing voice mentally.  
  
"Hey it was the best thing I could come up with on short notice." Briar replied defending himself.  
  
"Well, Roach of the Thief Lords eh? Hey Yashin, come'er." Their stopper light a lamp and the fowl stench of burning animal fat filled their nostrils.  
  
A second companion tumbled into the light, rubbing his eyes, yawned and asked. "What's the big idea Kally? I was have'n the best dream."  
  
"We got some company, it's Roach."  
  
"Roach? You ain't foolin' are ya?"  
  
The boy, only a few years older then Sandry and Briar looked at Briar with big eyes and then exclaimed. "Why gods bless me it is old Roach! I thought you was sentenced to the docks, I wasn't sure that even you could escape from there but I guess you did!"  
  
It took a minute for Briar's memory to return but then he remembered. Yashin had been one of the older boys in his gang a long time ago. It looks like this was where life had led him. After the two friends had shook hands and reacquainted Yashin seemed to notice Sandry for the very first time. Partly because she was hiding behind Briar and partly because he was talking so much.  
  
"An' who's this beauty Roach? She yours?"  
  
Briar smiled and pulled Sandry out from behind him. "This is Lace. When I was cleaning one of the ships I saw her master beating her and saved her. She helped me escape and I did the same for her. She's my...my fiancée."  
  
"Fiancée!" Sandry gapped at him.  
  
"This way no one can take you away while we're traveling down here. It's very bad luck to steal a bride." Sandry shook her head and smiled silently.  
  
"Well congratulations Roach! Always knew you'd get a real nice one someday."  
  
"Alright, alright. Now before you two go any further in your chattering I'd like to get the poor girl some real cloths." Kally cut in. "And also it would be nice enough of ya to remember to introduce me Yashin."  
  
"Sorry Kally, I got so rapped up in catching up that I guess I forgot. Roach, Lace this is Kally. My kaboo at that minute." He smiled widely and draped an arm around Kally's shoulders. It was also the first time that Sandry had looked at Kally, I mean really looked at her. Her hair was short like a boys, and red. She was wearing a worn pair of breaches and a long shirt like Sandry and she also had a belt. Yashin was tall and thin, but muscular looking enough to put up a good fight.  
  
"Thank you, and now if you two boys will excuse us." Kally took Sandry by the wrist and dragged her into another room in this endless tunnel. Sandy looked back at Briar as if to say "help me" but as Briar was about to protest Yashin said. "Don't worry about her Roach. Kally may seem like a trap ready to spring but she's just a big softy."  
  
"I heard that!" Came Kally's voice from the other room, it was accompanied by Sandry's muffled laugh. Briar couldn't help but smile.  
  
"So your name's Lace is it? Pretty nice, did you're master pick that out for ya or did you chose that for when you an Roach get into Emelan?"  
  
"Yes. I plan to make it my new name." Sandry answered as they when through some of Kallys other cloths. 'Most of these are probably stolen' Sandry couldn't help thinking.  
  
"So um...what does kaboo mean? I've never heard that term before I'm afraid I don't know much of the language here." Sandry asked nervously. To her surprise Kally just laughed.  
  
"Child where are you from anyway? Kaboo is slang for mate, or someone you fancy in that kind of way. You're Roach never told you, you was his kaboo?"  
  
Sandry blushed and didn't make eye contact with Kally.  
  
When the two girls came out Briar and Yashin had laid out some food and had light a fire in the fire pit. Sandry was wearing breaches and top that could have been blue once but their color was not identifiable anymore.  
  
'At least a majority of her legs aren't showing anymore.' Briar thought with relief. 'Not that I don't mind seeing them.' Briar would have blushed but he kept it off.  
  
Sandry and Kally sat down next to Briar and Yashin and they all helped themselves to the food. After a little while Briar asked out of the blue. "Hey Yahin, you know that old tunnel that no one's ever used before? You know where it is?"  
  
Yashin almost choked on the piece of stale bread in his mouth. "That one? You drunk or something Roach? No one's ever survived that let alone been crazy enough to use it for centuries. What you wanna go in there for?"  
  
Briar look back and forth to either openings of the cavern. "Rumor has it that, that tunnel leads under the castle."  
  
"The Duke's castle?" Kally asked, her eyes wide, her mouth full.  
  
"How many other castles do you know of? Course the Duke's castle. Well anyway Lace's mum was bought on to the castle and then hired on as a maid. She's the last relative that Lace's got."  
  
"An you wanted her there for the wedding?" Kally finished for him, making, making up a story easy for him.  
  
"Yup." He answered  
  
"Well then why not just go up to the doors an wait until she leaves?"  
  
This time Sandry spoke up. "Well we don't have enough money for a wedding and my mom will know where the treasury is because she's probably cleaned it once or twice."  
  
"Nice." Briar complemented her.  
  
"Thank you." Sandry smiled at him.  
  
"You think you can pull it off Roach? I mean you're the best thief I know for miles but...the Dukes treasury? You gotta be crazed."  
  
"I think it's romantic." Kally said. "Think about it, here are these two young people, willing to risk they're lives for they're love for one another."  
  
"What is it with girls and romantic stuff?" Yashin asked Briar with an "ick" look on his face. Sandry smiled and muffled another laugh.  
  
"Anyway. Where do you think it is Yashin?"  
  
"The forbidden hall is just around the next couple of corners. But listen to me, you better stalk up on food in everyplace you come to 'cuz once you get in there there's no food and little water."  
  
Later that night they put the fire out and everyone was quite ready to get back to sleep. Sandry felt the actions of that night finally catching up to her. She was so tired she could barely walk to where Kally had laid out her and Briar's beds. She dropped into hers and was asleep so fast that she hadn't even pulled her covers over herself.  
  
Briar chuckled as he looked at Sandry on her heap of rags. She was so exhausted that she had forgotten to pull her covers on. A sudden wave of guilt washed over him. 'I shouldn't have pushed her this hard. I could have easily carried her some of that way.'  
  
He saw her shiver and he did pick her up. She seemed so light and vulnerable in his arms, her face was so angelic when she was asleep that he almost didn't want to ever let her go. She turned over in her sleep and her head rested on his chest, one of her hands no grasping his shirt.  
  
"Briar..." She whispered.  
  
'Is she...dreaming about me?' He wondered. He finally placed her on his bed and covered her with his blankets and he settled into the ones that she had fallen on.  
  
He couldn't sleep. For some reason he just couldn't sleep. He kept look at Sandry, staring at her face and watching her as she slept. Then he reached out a hand and firmly grasped hers, almost as soon as he did sleep came to him. 


	10. A new path to walk

I'm sorry!!! I know it's been like forever sence I updated but bare w/ me I wrote a loooooog chappy as a "please forgive me and finish my story" and her it is!

"What do you mean there's no site of them?!" Chi-Cura exclaimed, she rose to her feet and glared down at the pirates that were bowing at her feet.

"Many apologies my Ladyship, but we've seen neither head or tail of the two mages you require."

"And the other two? What of them?"

"We think they're in the Temples with the rest of the slime from Emelan."

"Good, keep them there until we find the other two mages they can't have vanished, they are somewhere and we are going to find them even if we must turn the countryside upside-down and back again!"

Briar woke up to the smell or roasting meat and the sun shining in his eyes. Groggily he sat up, rubbed his eyes and looked around trying to remember where he had fallen asleep.

"Good morning sleepy head!" Came a very cheerful voice from in front of him. "Sandry where are we?"

Sandry's hands jolted and she almost flipped half the ham instead of all of it. "Briar my name's Lace remember?" She remained him telepathically. 'Crap!' He thought, not so that Sandry could hear it.

'That's ok Briar, I don't think they heard.'

He let out a breath and looked over at what she was doing.

"So what cooking?"

Sandry smiled widely at him with her mouth closed. "I'm making breakfast, Kally taught me."

At that moment Kally came back into the room with a big bag or things, which she put down beside her as she sat down beside Sandry.

"Hah sure did, what kind of servant doesn't know how to cook ham? It's a good thing you're going to find her mom or she'd not know nothin' about anything."

Briar chuckled and nibbled on the piece of ham that Sandry had put down on a big leaf for him.

"We'll if anything she's good with thread."

"I'll take that as a complement."

"So what's in the bag Kally?" Briar asked, it was a good thing Sandry told him her name or he would have forgotten that too.

"Stuff for you're trip of course, water food, blankets, some bandages Lace made from just some just some reeds, and some other stuff. Oh and Yashin made a map for ya."

Briar finished off the last of his breakfast and laughed. "How long was I asleep?"

"Long enough for me to make breakfast twice in one day." Sandry answered, pointed her thumb at the two empty and used leafs next to he fire pit.

"Well you know when you travel at night it's hard to keep up regular sleeping habits."

"I hear you brother." Came Yashin's voice from the next room, he apparently had been looking for something and when he couldn't find it decided to come back.

A few hours later Yashin and Kally were walking Sandry and Briar through the tunnels turning this way and that until they got to an opening where it branched off in the three places.

"Now you wanna take the tunnel on the far right, that will lead you to the entrance of the Forbidden Passageway. Just look a the map, it should help it's what's left of a map my father made a long time ago, it should tell you which ways are dangerous and which aren't. The line going through it right there."

He pointed to a long black line that stretched from one side of the old ruff edge of the paper to the other.

"Is the 'three fourths of the way' mark, that there is clean fresh drinkin' water. Refill you're canteens there and you'll make it to the Castle."

Kally nodded to Sandry and Briar a custom goodbye, "If you two survive this, you'll be the second ones to do it."

"Good luck, I hope ya make it." Yashin finished, shaking Briar's hand, then Sandry's.

"I wish you two luck as well, may the Gods keep you Safe." Kally made the god circle for a god that Sandry was not familiar but Briar seemed to know, because he drew the same upon his chest.

"Goodbye Kally, and Yashin thank you for everything." Sandry said, smiled at her new friends.

"Yeah, it's been good seeing an old face again." Briar commented.

The four parted, two going north and two south. Sandry stopped when she saw the big black door in front of them, and she hesitated for a moment as far as she could see into that unknown tunnel it was nothing but black.

Then she felt a warm hand on her shoulder, she looked up and saw Briar looking down on her a comforting smile on his face. Sandry returned his smile, and grasping his hand they walked into that black abyss.

Truthfully it was only that way for a few seconds, Briar struck a match a lit the torch that they carried with them.

"We're going to have to limit the use of this, we only have so much oil." Sandry nodded, acknowledging that she understood.

They tunnel wasn't flat but had a very ragged floor. Rocks stuck up everywhere, and since the flame was a small one it didn't always shine light on the desired places and many times they had to steady one another.

There were also a few drop offs that they had to climb down but not too bad.

A few hours later Briar had stopped to look at the map to confirm their course. "Hm...this is odd..."

"What?" Sandry asked, she was sitting beside him on a smaller rock.

"This says that there should be a water fall up ahead....just a few turns around the bend...."

"I don't hear anything though..."

"That's what I'm wondering about, maybe the water is all dried up."

"It wouldn't have been much help to us anyway, Yashin specifically said not to drink any water until we got to the big river, and that we would have we would have heard by now."

"I guess we should just keep going and see what we see. As long as we follow this map we should be ok."

They had been walking for about another mile before they stopped again, this time not to luck at a map but because there was no more path. They were looking down on what indeed was a water fall, but unlike most waterfalls this waterfall was not pleasant to look at, it was black and gooky, filled with who knows what.

"What are we doing to do? It doesn't look there is any bridge."

"If there was it's gone now." Briar added, moving the torch this way and that trying to find a way they could cross.

"Oh look Briar! Over there it's a bridge! " Sandry pointed to a place where the land wasn't but a ten yards apart, as oppose to the possible mile that the one in front of them was, and there was a small bride strung across it.

She was going to walk over to the place she had discovered but Briar stopped her.

"It's a narrow passage way, let me go first to make sure it's safe."

Sandry was about to argue but thought better of it, they had no time to waste arguing over simple matters.

Briar walked face to the wall along the narrow ledge, all was going relatively well he inched along once step at a time and was just a few feet from his destination when the ground under his left foot crumbled, and some of it feel into the water below.

"Wow!" Briar exclaimed as he regained his footing, he looked back at Sandry who was clasping her hands together tightly as one does when their praying and he smiled a little.

He made it to the wider part of the ledge and near the edge saw that it was in fact just about a five yard distance.

"You can look now Sandry." He called back.

Sandry looked up from her current position and defensively said, "I wasn't afraid." After hearing the chuckles that escaped him.

A few minutes later Sandry was on the other side with Briar, and now they had another task. Should they dare try and cross this rickety bridge, which was missing so many planks? The answer had to be yes because unless they suddenly sprouted wings there was no way of getting across.

"I think this time I should go first, I know you're going to object but just listen ok?"

Briar crossed his arms in front of his chest and put on a "I don't care what you say you're not going to change my mind so you might as well try anyway." Look signaling for her to continue.

"I weigh a lot less then you do right?"

"Right."

"So if I go first it's less stress on the bridge and a better chance of you making it too."

Briar though for a few seconds then he said, "Fine...I would feel a lot better about this if there were any plants around though...particularly vines...then they could catch you if you fell."

Sandry smiled. "Don't worry Briar, I promise I'll be careful. And just to be sure I'll send some magic through the rope. It's very old so I don't know how well it will obey me but I'm going to try."

With that she focused her magical talent on the old, broken and worn lengths of rope that held the feeble bridge together. The fibers started to move on their own, trying to get out of Sandry's grasp, not being used to magic they were reluctant to submit to her will.

But a few minutes of rustling and fighting and the rope finally gave up and let Sandry strengthen it's old weary body.

Sandry took a deep breath and stepped onto the first plank, it creaked but held out under her small weight. She took another step and then another until she was halfway out, then she came to a spot where there weren't any planks for a few steps. She would have to walk along the rope or jump...

Briar who had been pacing back and forth on the ledge where they had started stopped and held the torch as far as he could so that she could see.

Sandry, taking another breathe and sending another serge of magic through the rope stepped onto the thin rope and inched her way to the other end.

Briar held his breath as she neared the next plank, hoping and praying with his whole being that it would not give way.

'If it does...I'll be ready to plumage in right after her, we're in this together.'

Sandry put first one foot down on the wooden step, then the other and then released the rope, but when she stepped onto the plank after it her foot fell through.

"Ah!" She yelled as a majority of her torso disappeared under the bridge, just her head, shoulders and arms were visible above it. She grabbed onto the nearest piece of rope and clung to if for dear life.

"Sandry!" Briar exclaimed as he ran towards the bridge. "Hold on I'm coming!"

"Briar wait, don't run on the planks! I'm sure I can pull myself up..."

And she pulled on that rope and kicked with her legs but her arms weren't strong enough to lift enough of her body over the planks beside her.

"Sandry you're going to hurt yourself, just hold on and try not to move." Briar began to walk the planks as fast as he could to get to her.

Finally too came to the part of the journey where you had to walk the tightrope, putting the small torch in the cock of his arm he inched his way towards her.

In her fright Sandry had lost concentration on her magical control over the ropes and they weakened.

Briar put down the torch so that it stood erect and holding the handle of the bridge with one hand he reached for Sandry's.

"Grab my hand."

Sandry wasn't sure which hand to release from it's safe place on the rope and hesitated still after choosing her right.

"I promise I won't let you fall, trust me." Briar stretched his hand further and Sandry grabbed it. Briar pulled and Sandry pushed with her left and soon she was back on top of that unsteady bridge.

Sandry looked up at Briar, the fear still lingering in her eyes. Something in Briar's heart made it beat louder and he prayed that she didn't hear it too. He cupped her face with his hand and tried to rub out the coldness from them.

It was then that they heard the small and deadly sounds, snap snap snap! They looked and saw that the rope was started to tare and break way from the posts that were driven into the ground to keep in there.

In a moment of panic Briar snatched up the torch and he and Sandry ran as fast as they could to the other side.

"We're not going to make it!"

"Yes we are, we're just going to have to jump!"

And jump they did, but they didn't reach the edge, they had to grab onto the bride ropes and after a quick fall they slammed into the wall of the cliff, the impact extinguished the torch and they were in the dark.

"B-Briar....now what do we do?" Sandry asked.

"Just before the light went out I saw that there's a beach close at the right. If we jump that way and aim our whole bodies to the right we should make it."

"Alright...I trust you." And Sandry being the nearest to the right jumped first, and indeed she landed on cold hard sand.

"You were right Briar!" She exclaimed happily as she heard him crunch down beside her.

Then she thought she heard something move and begged for Briar to relight the torch.

But as soon as that small flame cast light upon the walls of the tunnel Sandry wished for it to go away again. She shrieked in terror at what lay before her and she clutched Briar's arm, burring her head in his sleeve.

On the floor lay bodies, bones and other horrible remains.

"Kally wasn't kidding when she said that many people didn't make it...."

Briar wrapped the arm that wasn't holding the burring stick that they used for light and wrapped it around Sandry's shoulders. "They probably just drowned is all..."

'I'm not going to tell her what really happened to them...but I have to get the both of us back up to that ledge as soon as possible!'

He looked at the map and found that there was a steep path back up along the cliff.

A few hours later they were settling down for bed, feeling that they couldn't go another step without sleep or food they had stopped eaten the rest of that day's ration and were now laying out the blankets that Kally had packed for them.

Sandry shivered a little as she spread out the bottom blanket that separated them from the cold hard ground.

She blushed when she noticed that there was only one set of blankets. "I guess she thought because we told her we were engaged...she only packed one bed setting.

Briar blushed too, hopping that the light from Sandry's crystal hadn't given away the red tints in his checks. (they had put out the torch to save oil and were using Sandry's crystal))

"I'll sleep on top of the blankets if you want Sandry, it's not too cold."

Sandry shook her head and climbing under the covers patted he spot next to her. "No way, you're going to freeze to death."

"Alright..." Briar uneasily climbed into the substitute bed and lay beside Sandry who turned over on her side to make more room for him.

She had already closed her eyes and was drifting to sleep. "Goodnight Briar..." She whispered, nudged her head closer to him un-knowingly.

"Night." Briar answered, as he felt his own eyelids become heavy, but he still felt that sleep was not an option although it was necessary.

'Lets hope that whatever ate those men....is only a water inhabitant...'

And through all these thoughts of what would happen if they were eaten in their sleep he drifted into a light slumber, waking up at the slightest noise.


	11. Endless chasm

Oky-Doky people, I know I haven't updated in forever, and quite frankly it's because I've moved on to other couples, however an email from one of my readers inspired me to write yet another chapter and finish the story, there will be atleast one more chapter after this one and u might have to wait for that one also as final exams are only a month away I really should be studying right now but who cares! definitely not me! Anyway, this chapter is dedicated to that perfect fan that every artist dreams of having

It had been three days sense their departure from their friends and their entrance of the tunnel known as the pass way of Babalon. Nothing except for the rats and the fowl insects that dwelled in these dark chasms had been spotted yet by our two heroes, and hopefully nothing else would be. However for this slight lack or enemy something still laid heavily on Briar's mind; they had been traveling for almost four days, their food supply was lacking and their water almost gone. He had no idea how many leagues they had traveled or how much longer it was to the castle, or what he was even be looking for! He suspected there would be a door of some kind, but other then that he was clueless. Sandry had no idea of this, and followed him day through day with a shine in her heart and would beam at him proudly through the dark.

Things were running as smoothly as things could, when one day they came to a fork in the path. Sandry curled closely behind Briar, cowering at the site of the two seemingly endless holes, which at a distance's glance appeared to be two great mouths side by side ready to swallow up any who dare pass through them.

"What do we do? We could use magic to follow the paths and see which one leads to the castle." She said., straining her eyes in both directs for a glimpse of light. "Yeah, but that takes up a lot of energy, something we can't exactly spare." "But if we go down the wrong one we could loose days!" Briar thought about it for a few seconds, his face looking troubled. "Let me do it, only one of us needs to." Sandry pleaded.

"Fine, but be careful. I'll watch over you." Sandry nodded and prepared her mind for magical travel. Briar sat her down, an arm wrapped around her back, his other near his leg where he kept one of his many concealed blades.

It took Sandry almost half an hour to follow both trails. The first, she reported lead to a dead end a few miles down, while the other did carried on for at least a three mores day's more journey.

'Three days….' Thought Briar. 'Our food won't last much longer then two days and a third breakfast…and the water is more then half gone.'

Sandry, as if reading his mind, reached out for his hand and gave him an encouraging smile. "Don't worry, we're going to make it to the castle, I bet the others are getting along fine so far without us. Remember Daja and Trish can take care of themselves." "Yeah, most likely."

Speaking of Daja and Trish, the other two of the great four-some had up till this time been planning to re-take the city. With their teacher's help they could easily do it. The only problem was there were thousands of innocent hostages which could be easily be used against them in case of an uprising.

"So what are we going to do about all the citizens?" Trish asked with a slightly annoyed tone to her voice.

"Well, we have to have a way to protect them…" Daja's voice trailed off in deep thought. "Maybe if we have Rosethorn and Lark stay near them and you, me, Neko and Frostpine can storm the rest of the place."

"Sounds like a plan, we just have to forget that they have a hundred ships snuggled nicely in our port, each of them with long range cannons on board. Oh and have I mentioned that you've been melting that lamp for almost half an hour now?" She pointed to a bronze lamp that now had no resemblance of the object it once was, but instead a large candle that had been sitting upon a stove.

Daja moaned, slumped down against the side of the wall, closed her eyes which were weary from lack of sleep, and meditated.

"I wish Briar and Sandry were here….maybe we could try to talk to them." Trish suggested, making an effort to cheer her up.

"No, we've trying already, they're just too far away." Daja argued, her mood portrayed that she had quite given up.

"Look, there's no use moping around. I'll call in a storm tonight, destroy the ships, and then we won't have half as much to worry about."

Little did Trish know that calling up a major storm would mean trouble for her two friends below.

Sandry and Briar, nearly five days away from their destination, were at the moment struggling with an upward climb. A mile of rocks, easily half a mile high, was the only thing standing in their way from getting on with their journey. They were almost half way up, their progress slowed by the loose rocks that had a habit of slipping out from under neither their feet and hands whenever they pleased. Briar, his healed injury giving him trouble, was behind Sandry. Suspecting it was his chest which slowed him down she quickened her pace, hoping to reach the top that much sooner so she could help him.

"Sandry don't go so fast, you could fall." Sandry looked back at him, but could say nothing, as the torch which provided them their only light was clasped between her teeth. She was having difficulty keeping the worry off her face, but she nodded and slowed her pace.

Finally Sandry's hand touched solid ground, a wave of comfort swept over her. Throwing her legs over the edge she emerged from a world of darkness into one of light. They had been so busy concentrating on climbing that they didn't notice the dim light that had grown brighter as they ascended higher. They had reached possibly them most civil part of their journey, holes like the ones in the passage they had seen before this one allowed a small amount of light to shine through. It wasn't daylight, but it was warm, with an almost enchanting blue tint.

"Oh Briar you have to see this!" Sandry exclaimed as she scanned the now more friendly and wide looking tunnel. "Briar?" She turned a noticed that he wasn't with her. "Briar!"

He was a few feet below her, clenching his chest and trying to climb at the same time. "Hold on, I'll come down to get you." She said as she started to ascend back down. "No, I'll be there in a second." He answered, force and slight pain in his voice.

Sandry watched and waited as he got closer. When he was at an arm's reach she grabbed for his hand and pulled him up. When he was safely on the ground beside her she touched his for head and it was hot. "Did you drink any water at all today?" Briar, who was fiddling with the strings on his bag, mumbled no. "Briar! What were you thinking? I know for a fact that you haven't drunken once since yesterday morning, you have to drink something."

"I'm thinking we still have a long way to go and no hopes of getting there with the supplies we have!" He yelled. Sandry pulled back her hand from his head as if it's heat had increased greatly in a slit second. He never yelled at her, not sense they were children and we're properly friends yet.

He turned is face from her, and stared at the ground apologetically. "We have to keep going, this light is a good sign." With that he stood up and began walking further down the cave. Sandry went from shock to anger, how could he be like this? Didn't he care if he died? Did he really think he was going to get away with letting her live on without him?

She took the canteen from her shoulder, picked up the torch which had been dropped and extinguished, and ran in front of him, stopping him. "Sandry?"

"We're in this together whether you like it or not, from now on I don't want you treating me like some little kid who can't take care of themselves. I know I've been the damsel in distress for most of the trip, but you can't give up everything for me. I can't do this without you…you can't die now. I-I won't let you."

He didn't say anything, it was as if we couldn't. 'Sandry…' He turned his face away from her, instead staring at his shoes which were covered with dust from the floor of their endless abyss. "Sorry." He muttered solemnly. This was the first time they had argued in a long time.

These spirits did not last long, for their food and water ran out the day following and on the third they had nothing but each other. By the last light of the day we see our hero's struggling forward, stomachs already two days empty. "Briar, where do you think we are?" Sandry asked as they fell down upon the cold hard floor. "I don't know." A few minutes of silence followed and then Sandry continued bravely; "You know, we'll never be able to sleep with our stomachs making such noise, maybe we should keep going. We could use up the last of the oil and that would be less to carry."

"Might as well." He said as he began to strike two rocks together to light the freshly oiled stick. Half an hour later they were still walking when suddenly Briar reached over and hastily blew out their light. "What is it?" She asked physically. Briar walked a few paces, placed his ear against a light hole and answered. "I hear voices."

Sandry stained her ears, for he motioned for her not to move, and indeed there were voices outside. Light from the full moon gave bodies to these voices, they were the two pirates who had chased them earlier. As quietly as he could Briar moved some of the sand from the edge of his lookout, he could see the two men, and behind them, not far off in the distance, was their destination, barely a day's journey.

"So what's da plan again?" "You dumbbell, u forgotten already? Man u'r duller then a blade whats been run under a horse cart. Don't u remember? Her Ladryship told us that tomorrow night, if the other two mages don't show, we brake the city down, find the two we got and use em as bait."

"Daja and Tris!" Sandry exclaimed aloud.

To be continued


End file.
